The Bird and The Worm
by Razvanor
Summary: Naruto was adopted into the Uzumaki House due to his unexpressed ability to use chakra, a rare ability in the Konoha citystate. When he makes a deal with the Kyuubi out of need, his life is thrown into the conspiracy the city was built on. NaruHin
1. Awakening

**Awakening**

Everything was dark. Twilight had stolen softly over the domed horizon and poured whatever little light it had into the city-state, before finally dying, its last tendrils of light almost like fingernails holding on to the ledge of a cliff for dear life. Day had finally lost its will to live. Until tomorrow.

Electric light flooded the hallway as Naruto watched the sun's death with distant apathy. The sunrise had been better, he decided, before turning down the stairs, winding down the tower's interior, his slippered feet making no noise on the harsh stone. His hand trailed along the wall's cool rock, but he didn't really need it. Here and there, the walls' monotonous face was punctured by a splash of color, artwork of the family. His family. Well, he liked to think so. Pausing at one in particular, he stared it over with dispassionate eyes. A portrait of his mother and his father, with a younger version of his own countenance standing between them, they stared straight ahead at the painter. Sighing, he tightened his grip on the backpack, and turned back down towards the ever winding stairs. The blonde boy had never been allowed to refer to them as father and mother.

"Are you lost?" The voice rippled in the air beside his ear, quiet, but there.

Naruto nearly tripped in the stairwell, grumbling softly as he kept his balance. He hadn't expected the city-mind to see him such an old section of the mansion. "No, thank you, Delphi. However, would you mind turning the lights up in here?"

Instantly, the world was brighter. "Thank you."

"Quite welcome, young master," hummed Delphi, before silencing.

"Never alone in here, am I?" Naruto mumbled to himself, pushing open a door, and stepping into the main section of his home once more.

---

The mansion, as he simply called it, was more like a small community then a large building. It was totally self-contained. Water came from a natural aquifer below ground and electricity was derived from a geothermal plant in the mansions lower level basements. Built like a fortress, it contained the main building that made up his family's living area, a massive courtyard, and a few building hugging the outer wall that many servants, mechanics, and other tradesmen loyal to his family called home. The entire thing was set near the back of Konoha, near the massive wall that encircled their world for several hundred kilometers. The glass dome above them let light in, and nothing else, the phantom clouds above like delicate white puffs of magic, enticing the city-state below them to join them in the outside world. A world they wouldn't, and couldn't, touch.

The house itself was overly elaborate, massive, and constantly shifting due to the integral design of the house. It realigned itself according to the main computer's weekly blueprints, largely to offer a change of scene, but also as a precautionary measure against burglars and the like. Not that there were any in the Konoha city-state, but, it was built in a time where there were such riff-raff running about. Naruto and the others residing in the house had their hand display maps automatically adjusted to the changes of walls, the movement of furniture, the shifting of stairs, and the movement of doors. It was almost annoying, if Naruto did not enjoy taking his faithful backpack, a few snacks, and a mildly explorative curiosity to wander the house and note the changes.

It had become ritual to him over the last ten years, since he was adopted at age seven. Both of his adoptive parents had made it excruciatingly clear as to what their relationship was.

"Where were you?" came the sharp, clipped voice of his mother. "Out wandering the house again when you should have been studying, I should think."

He slid into his chair at the dinner table, opposite of his father, a thin looking man with a sharp noise and white hair. His mother sat beside him, her spoon primly held in long painted nails. Naruto often thought her face was like a turtle with constipation, squinched eyes and lips, thin nose and squinting eyes.

"Yes, Madame. I was out in the house today." Naruto had long learned to silence his own wants and desires and put them behind the family's needs. "But I had finished studying for this week. The tutor said I had improved in physics."

"Ah, good then. But I expect especially excellent remarks from the teacher next time. You often daydream and lose focus. This is not what is needed from our heir."

"Now, honey, don't be so hard on the boy. He has done well." His father, or Sir, was somewhat less harsh, but he also spoke less often, meaning that he rarely spoke against his wife's wishes. He was promptly ignored as he returned to his soup.

Madame sniffed, her thin nostrils flaring. "Before supper, you will recite your creed to me."

Naruto dipped his head. "I, Naruto Uzumaki, heir of the Uzumaki House, have these duties to which I am bound to love and obey as my own flesh and bone: I will grow to claim the house and continue the line of Uzumaki; I will protect the Uzumaki House sacred power from thief, throne, or threat; I am to keep my affairs close to my heart and let slip of none of which I wish to keep secret. These I will do to continue the House's power and legacy, until I so shall die and pass on this creed." He finished with a clack of his teeth, his food being set before him as he did. After a full day of bland protein bars and water, the clear, warm miso soup was a welcome indulgence. His pale blue eyes shimmered with a little emotion as he dug in gratefully. When he looked up again, both were gone, leaving only the servant standing by his side.

And so supper passed at the Uzumaki House.

---

"It's time to wake up, young master." The city-mind. It bothered him that the sentient computer could see him even in his own bedroom, but this was a must to keep order. He realized this. Pushing the thoughts of annoyance off with his blanket, he rose to his feet, setting them on the floor. Today, he'd go exploring. Back down to where the sacred power was. He'd almost managed to get in.

Delphi had always arrested his descent into the lowest basements of the house, and for good reason. He had absolutely no idea what hid behind the intricate, metal blast door of the massive vault set hundreds of meters below his feet. When he'd first found it, Delphi had stopped him at the edge of the stairs. He had no authority over her where even his parents were not allowed to go. But the computer mind was fallible, as were all sentient creatures. And, he found that the mind was not omniscient as he had thought for many years. It had a variety of sub-systems that monitored the entire city-state of Konoha, and would only devote her voice and reason to the larger concerns. She could only split herself so many ways before her sentience was fragmented. So, the sub-systems would watch for major discrepancies, then alert her, ignoring the minor ones. And a minor one was his taking a few steps into the cavern beneath the house. He would walk until she was notified, and she shooed him away. In this manner, he managed to make Delphi totally ignore his presence in the room, by accustoming her to his being there.

As he slipped into his house slippers, pulled on a clean shirt, and his backpack, he began to walk, straight out of his tidy room and into the hallway, heading for the stairs. His parents would have more than a fit if they found out their perfectly obedient boy was breaking on of the sacred rules of the house. Never, ever go down to the sacred power. But his curiosity, and his over displeasure with the way things were run around here clashed against the iron rules they had long ago been drilled into his head.

And now, he was there. Practically right in front of the door. And she wouldn't notice. None of them would. He couldn't help but grin at his brilliance. "Well, well, well, what's behind door number one, he muttered, staring at the keyboard and a small screen set into the wall beside the blast door. The passphrase. It required that, and a small sample of DNA for verification. Naruto could almost laugh at how stupidly it was set up. But, then again, he was the heir. None of the built in traps would have been sprung. He would see it. He'd all ready found the password in his father's wallet almost a year ago. Reaching out, he set his hand against a small hand-shaped impression in the wall, felt the tiny twinge of pain as a needle drew blood. His other hand tapped at the keyboard. _A rose by any other name would smell as sweet._ He had no idea what that meant, but smiled as it verified him. The door clicked unlocked, and he set his fingers on the edge of the door. It opened slowly, then hydraulics sensed his presence and helped out.

---

"A clay...pot." Naruto stood inside the massive vault, only to be confronted with a small clay pot of ancient design on a raised pedestal, illuminated with a beam of light. "This is the sacred power," he grunted, walking towards it. A kanji etched into the pot's surface glared at him suddenly. "Seal," he murmured, tracing the letter and reading it out loud. "Seal? Wonder what's been sealed?" A single tingle raced up his arm as he touched the pot. He jerked back, startled, then lifted the pot's lid. Nothing inside. Sighing, he set it back down and looked at the pedestal. All around the edge, there were little drawings, like hieroglyphics, carved into the metal. They looked like, "Hands? Hm? Hand positions," he muttered, then flicked an eye up.

He tried one, and flinched as the tingle in his arm was magnified. "Huh..." he grunted in amusement. It felt like pins and needles, as if his arms were beginning to fall asleep. He tried the second position, and smirked as the pins were replaced by a steady throb. It was not entirely unpleasant. Following the pedestal around, he made the hand signs slowly, humming softly to himself as the throb grew to his whole body, and then became a powerful warmth. He glanced at the last position, and took a deep breath. The boy felt as if he was at the edge of a precipice, staring down at something looming far below. But that was nonsense, right? Letting his breath out shakily, he made the last move.

And everything went white, as a distant roar filled his ears.

---

_**I AM AWAKENING!**_

---

A ringing laughter assaulted his ears, as his vision cleared, the white fleeing from the edge of his eyes. He glanced about. Nothing. He glanced at the pot. Shattered. No, not shattered. Utterly and totally fragmented. It looked more like a pile of red dust than shards. He felt panicky, his breath coming in short gasps as he stared around, big blue eyes wide. "Wh-what happened?"

The ringing laughter came again, but it was more subdued, less wild, as if it were at his expense. Even though it scared him half to death that something he couldn't see was mocking him, he still bristled with anger. "Sh-show yourself, you coward! I won't get laughed at by something to afraid to show its face."

"_Oh?"_ A breath filled the room, like a fire burning sulfur and tar, like scorching winds from far off places and long forgotten times. _"And what, pray tell, will the little child do if I decide I'd rather stay unseen? Will you scream and shout in frustration, perhaps? Will you beat yourself bloody just to show that you can? Ohhhh, the possibilities." _The air before him flickered. In fact, the air of the whole room flickered, distorting the clean lines of the metal vault. _"Well, either way, you'll just exhaust yourself, and seeing that the door has shut behind you, there's no way either of us is getting out. Might as well make yourself comfortable, hm?"_

Naruto raked a hand through his spiky long hair, then pointed at the air. It didn't matter what or who this thing was, he was getting on the short end of Naruto's all ready short temper. "First off, fire breath, I ain't a kid. I'm seventeen."

"_Child," _asserted the voice, as if nodding in agreement.

Flustered, the blonde continued. "And second off, the door is not closed. I left it open." He spun towards the door, smirking softly. It quickly melted off his face. The computer screen beside the door blinked _'__**Auto-defense activated'**_. The door was sealed. Running over to the keypad, Naruto tried the passphrase and the DNA scanner. Nothing. In fact, it blinked a message. _**'Contamination. Contamination. Doors Auto-locked. NO ADMITTANCE.'**_

"Oh Frig!" Naruto pulled his hand away. "What's up with this thing?" He tried again. Same thing. "Did...did you do this?" he spat, turning and pointing a finger at the massive shape flickering in the air. It was becoming increasingly clearer.

"_No. You did. You unsealed me. And by doing so, you sealed me in the vault. This thing is meant to keep me in."_ A pair of translucent eyes, the color of molten metal slowly opened into existence. _"A parting gift from a friend of yore. I'd imagine it's quite a bit later."_ Teeth were next in line to be revealed, curled in a false smile of malice. _"About a millennia, I'd say. Hmmm, yes, that feels about right, if the age of the clay says anything."_

Clenching his teeth, Naruto's eyes widened as the massive fox came into existence, still not quite solid, wavering in the air like a scepter. Perhaps it was. "Are...you the sacred power?" He backed against the wall as he stared at the golden eyes, trying to believe he was still in bed, snoring away, and dreaming this all up. Yep, that must be it. Exactly that. "This isn't a dream," he muttered to himself.

"_No, I'm afraid not. Well, proper introductions,_" hummed the fox, dipping his head in mock servitude. _"I am known as the Kyuubi no Kitsune. I have many names, but that's my proper title. I never cared much for names. It's too...human."_ Those blazing amber eyes gazed over Naruto up and down in a quick glanced, then smirked. _"Well, well, well. It seems you are not totally useless, are you. You seem to be able to harness chakra."_

Slowly, confidence seemed to creep back into his body. Naruto frowned as he crossed his arms. Who did this thing think it, or he, was? Did he honestly expect the Uzumaki heir to be afraid of a giant furball. "Of course I can use chakra. I was chosen as the Uzumaki House heir for that reason alone." He frowned, realizing exactly what he had just said. He'd never said it out loud, but it was true. There was nothing especially special about him, except that he could use chakra, something so rare in this world that the Royal Guard were they only ones said to be able to harness it. Well, them, and one or two of the other houses, who married specifically to replicate the odd, almost mystical power. They had even developed interesting genetic traits due to this practice.

Heirs were considered especially important and special if they possessed Bloodline Limits, but Naruto had none. He was simply found to be able to use the powerful energy. Of course, this affiliation with chakra had never manifested. In all honesty, he didn't see any difference between himself and others about the house. He couldn't compare himself to the other Houses simply because he'd never been allowed outside the mansion. There was a very strong reason behind this.

"_I had no idea heirs were chosen nowadays. Mmm, but I suppose since sealing us all away, chakra had slowly leaked from the world."_ The Kitsune slowly lowered its head to Naruto's level, and grinned wickedly at him. _"But that may soon change. However, there must be a compromise between us, or all will be for naught. Seeing as I can't leave, and neither can you while I'm in the room physically, then, I think I might have an idea."_

"'Us', you said us," Naruto challenged, not willing to quite accept there was no way out of the place. He didn't want to deal with this thing, this creature that looked as if the very fires of Hades had spawned it. "Who's 'Us'?"

"_Oh? You have no idea do you? How utterly disappointing. We've been forgotten." _Slowly, the fox rose again, smirking. _"The Bijuu. The Tailed-Beasts of Legend. The Great Destructive Forces of Earth! But now, there isn't even memory of us, much less myth and folklore. What has humanity been doing? Have you grown so feeble-minded and stupid?"_

"Hey!"

"_Anyway,"_ hummed the Bijuu, grinning again, _"Since you cannot reform a shattered sealing pot, and therefore, you may not seal me again, I am stuck here. And as long as I am stuck here, you're stuck here. I propose something."_ The molten eyes creased in a cross between disgust, remorse, and annoyance. _"You shall be my new 'pot'. My new vessel. Container, if you will. That way, I can get out of here, sealed within you, and you can leave as well. Unfortunately, this will greatly reduce my power and dramatically increase yours, but I am willing to do anything after being cooped up in a blasted jar for a thousand years."_

"What!? What do I look like, a tool you can use as you want? You think I'm stupid or something?" Naruto crossed his arms decisively, boiling in his own fury. "I do this, and then you get loose, and then I'm stuck unleashing a 'Destructive Force', or whatever. Nuh-uh. Get another sucker."

The Bijuu literally sighed a hurricane, the hair on Naruto's arms singeing. _"Listen, you foolish boy, you will die in here if you don't do as I say. There are no adverse effects, except for me. I'll be stuck in a human for the rest of my days. You think that's fun?" _Like a tiny, grumpy sun, the fur on the Kitsune flamed on, growing brighter. _"No. It's degrading. In fact, I'll probably be mocked and degraded for the rest of my days. And my days are very, very long. I swear to you, nothing bad will come of this."_

Exhaling in frustration, the blonde tried the door again. Nothing. The message just continued to blink. The more he thought about it, the more it looked like the only option. Laying down on the floor, he stared up at the ceiling, then gripped his forehead. No, there was no he was letting this..._thing_ lock itself in his body. But then again, the Kitsune had sworn. Then again, what good was a promise from a creature that probably lived for wanton destruction and the misery of humanity. However, maybe, just maybe, he could control the Kitsune. It was his body, wasn't it?

"I'll do it," he muttered under his breath, watching the Kitsune through his fingers. He could see the triumphant smile grace the creature's twisted maw, and then, it moved.

No, it didn't move so much as blur. The massive bulk slammed into him, a horrendous roaring that shook the vault tearing from the fox's throat as he pressed his forehead against the wall, Naruto's prone body between them. He was literally pressing himself into the blonde.

Burning, billowing pain flooded Naruto's body. Far more than he'd ever experienced in his sheltered life in the mansion, probably more than anyone in the history of mankind had ever felt. He tried to scream, his mouth open, but he couldn't hear himself, just the roaring. Fire leaped into his vision, and he realized his eyes had caught fire. He'd caught fire! His skin flamed, his tongue hissed, his ears charred, his hair smoldered, and he could feel it all. His conciousness never fled as fire spewed from his mouth, rolled off his teeth, and onto his naked form, his clothes little more than embers curling onto themselves on the floor. Senses stretched the limit as the fire promised to kill him, but never did, playing with him as the Bijuu slowly began to disappear from view.

Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it stopped. He fell limply to the floor, where he curled onto himself, silent tears streaming from his eyes, pooling beneath his head as he stared listlessly forward. And, ever so slowly, his hand brushed his stomach, where a fearsome heat seemed to emanate for a moment, then disappear. Looking down, he found an elaborate seal, a spiral surrounded by intricate designs.

Sealed? Marked.

Then, the coveted darkness swallowed him whole, plunging him into sweet, merciful nothingness.

----ooo----

Yo. Behold, the first chappie in all it's glory. (Yeech). I didn't like the beginning, and I'm glad that you read down to see the end, of which I'm stupidly proud of.

The Chapter Title is a song. In fact, every title will be a song by a favorite artist of mine. I'll also work int the words of the title into the chapter. This one was blaring obvious, of course, but, yeah, I'll make it more discreet later.

You know the drill. Read and Review. I'll introduce the other guys later. Romance is based on pairings you pick.

-Raz

**_Awakening by Switchfoot_**


	2. Run

**Run**

It was quiet, the sun was rising, the sky gradually turning a honey color, casting everything in amber-gold. Morning was once again gracing the city in a snow globe, as many in the city called it. Birds tittered in green trees, flicking their tails and calling to each other in chipper tones, utterly filled with love for everything and anything. People began to mill about in the city, opening stores, riding sky-rails to school, buying danishes and a coffee at the local café, chatting at each other from windows and balconies.

"_Did you feel that tremor last night?"_

"_Oh, my, yes. It was quite shocking, wasn't it?"_

"_People say it was the very cities foundations shaking. Tectonic plates or something."_

"_What do I think? Well, I dunno, geology ain't my area of study."_

"_People say there was a ghost sealed below the city long ago. Maybe it awakened? I'd be kinda mad if I was sealed beneath the city. Can you imagine my hair? Haha!"_

"_Yeah, I-whoa, watch that bike-I don't think it was anything to worry about. Barely made it on the Richter scale." _

"_Shaking? I didn't feel any shaking. I sleep like a drugged log, you know that."_

Gossip flitted about the city, as people continued their lives, happy to have something to chat about in their mundane lives.

Unaware of how important it was to be concerned over this particular incidence.

---

Naruto stared at himself in the mirror. He'd managed to sneak back upstairs, utterly naked. Not even Delphi noticed. He was surprised. At first, he wasn't quite sure what happened, but he slowly realized that it was significant. The blonde decided right there and then that he had to, absolutely must, find out about the Bijuu. He didn't care what it took.

This was important.

Scrubbing at his cheeks, he tried to get the black lines on his face off. They stubbornly stayed there. It looked as if he'd been instantly and cleanly tattooed. "Marked," he muttered to himself again. What would his parents say? And surely, surely, they had been made aware of the state of the vault. Then again, Delphi hadn't said anything.

He briefly thought about the makeup in his mother's room, then promptly decided against it. Whatever the consequences, he wouldn't wear makeup to cover up the lines. That was one thing his pride did not allow. Then, he brushed a hand on his bare stomach, and hissed. It still hurt. Like crazy. He silently cursed the fox, of whom he could find no trace of at all. Dressing in a black shirt and jeans, he slipped on some sneakers he often used to run around the mansion's wall ramparts, but now, he'd just need them to run out of the house faster. He'd never even attempted to leave the mansion, but if it was one thing he knew, he would need to get to the city outside these walls. The libraries in the mansion had nothing useful, and the computers had no trace of anything even related to giant foxes. Raking a hand through his wheat-colored hair, he frowned at himself. "This oughta be fun," he muttered to himself, finding his face in the mirror again, and poking a finger at his reflection. "In one night, you've ruined your face, ruined your stomach, sealed a friggin' monster into your body, and quite possibly just signed your own death warrant. And now, you're about to sneak out of the house into a city that Delphi has completely monitored."

Glancing at his hand display, he checked the time, then tapped into the computer network wirelessly, watching as colored bars scrolled past as he pulled up information. The bars substituted words, as they would have been laborious to fit into the small two by two screen on the back of his hand, so he had to accustom himself, as did everyone, to read the bars instinctively. Wiping his data screen clear with his finger, he stared out the window into the wide world beyond the mansion. Gripping his backpack for reassurance, he inhaled once, then let it out slowly. "Suicide mission is a go."

---

For some reason, Delphi continued to ignore his presence, and servants never regarded him anyway, unless addressed. But he sprinted through the house nonetheless, sliding down railings and nearly jumping off walls. It was odd. He felt more powerful, stronger. He'd always been in good condition, his parents had seen to it, but this was above and beyond. Energy seemed to bubble from within him, and his breath never fell short. He made a break for the door across the large lobby, jumped through behind an exiting servant, and was outside.

The courtyard was always the same, of course. No one regarded him. They simply kept on working, doing whatever they had to do. The cobblestone beneath his feet seemed to him far better than the plush carpet inside. He suddenly loved the outdoors. And he suddenly felt cheated as he stared up at the glass dome far above his head. They limited him. He'd never felt limited before. Didn't like the feeling. He also didn't like the walls. The constricted him as well. Glancing at the massive gates before him, he walked towards them slowly now. Naruto wasn't taking any chances that the silent Delphi would suddenly take notice of him. She always took notice of him. It was her job.

But she didn't, and he could feel sudden, massive swells of happiness. Perhaps he was really going to get out of here. Maybe, just maybe, he'd be able to break free from this prison. Yes, that's what it was. A prison. With its creeds, its rules, its studying, its cold and dingy atmosphere. There was nothing more that he wanted then to run out into the city. He--

A hand fell on his shoulder, and he cringed, hand on the small door built into the gate leading out into the world. Just a few measly feet of metal, and he would have been out. Of course, doors were made to keep people in. Or out. He forgot which at the moment. And at the moment, there was a rather serious looking guard holding the young man back with a stiff hand.

"Where ya goin', Master Naruto?" His voice was anything but pleasant. In fact, it even smelled faintly of garlic. "You know the rules. You are not allowed outside. You are to be kept a--"

"Yeah, yeah, I know what I'm supposed to be kept as. Listen, how about you let me through, and I'll try and get you promoted, eh?"

The guard was not amused. "Soooo, by letting you go, in direct violation of m' duties, I'd get a promotion? What, is it opposite day, or somethin'?" He stared down, unkindly, at Naruto from beneath the brim of his helmet. The gun on his hip was also rather unappealing. "I ain't stupid, Master."

Naruto frowned. This was going nowhere fast. He'd been spotted. He'd been stopped, and he had no idea what to do. The guy looked several times stronger than he was, and he wasn't about to notify the whole mansion that he'd broken out.

Suddenly, a single thought broke through is feverishly racing mind. "You can so do this." Then, it was gone. Resolutely, Naruto shoved the door open. It swung wide. The guard simply raised his brow and tightened his grip on the boy.

"Whatcha thinkin', boy?"

The outside world, beyond the walls, it was beautiful. A small green slope rolled down from where the mansion sat, and plummeted into a set of fields. The path to the city was lined in big, heavy trees swaying in the wind, the dirt road meandering through the fields, and into a small, lush wood, then out into the fringes of downtown. He grinned. This was for him. He could practically feel the dirt path beneath his feet as he virtually pounded his way to freedom.

Slowly, the blonde glanced up at the guard, winked, then slammed his elbow into the older man's stomach. He doubled over, wincing and fighting for breath. Naruto glanced around the courtyard. Delphi had to have noticed that. Violence? In her city? Never. But she didn't. He smirked, tripped the guard, then promptly bolted into the world.

---

Heavy with exuberance, and a little light-headed, Naruto nearly tripped over a small stone in his path as his mad dash carried him farther and farther from the mansion. He couldn't resist a whoop into the stillness, several servants looking up from their work in the fields, then promptly ignored him. If he was outside, it must be for a reason. He didn't stop until he'd broken into the tree line, wove around the tall wooden behemoths, and out into the outskirts of town.

The high-rises of the small city were almost starkly out of place among the smaller buildings surrounding them, their tips nearly reaching the glass sky above. Small houses sprang up around him, people in their yards laughing with those in other yards, or tending their gardens. There weren't many people though. He assumed they'd gone to work. These were probably just the housewives. Some looked at him, raised a brow at his apparent wildness, and then turned back. What did they care for a single blonde boy shouting his freedom to the clouds beyond his reach.

Not until he was in the thick of downtown did he slow down, clasping his backpack tightly. His stomach gurgled at him, and he briefly thought of lunch. Here, he was in the thick of things. People bumped and surged about on the concrete, the voices hundreds of people raising in the midday air to blend in a cacophony of a noise. He stood in the middle of the sidewalk, watching cars peter down the main street of the city, this way and that, letting people jostle him as he just stared. Then, he craned his neck up, and stared up. Skyrails crisscrossed like a lattice web far above his head, the public transportation system of the city. He'd always wondered what it would be like to ride one, so far up. Scary, he decided as he watched, but decided it would be worth the scare. Later though. Right now, he had to concentrate on his stomach.

A soft smell emanated from a small bistro down the way, of miso soup, cooking fish, and coffee. Stumbling when someone brushed roughly against him, he ignored the person and moved towards café. Inside, it was decorated much like he imagined. Warm wooden accents, hued in heavy brown stain, textured yellow walls, small pictures and paintings of the Konoha countryside tacked tastefully along the walls. It wasn't quite full, but it was still a busy looking place, people sipping frothy teas and coffees, enjoying pastries, or simply reading a newspaper or watching people walk by outside the window. As he stepped towards the counter, he peaked at the menu, and grinned.

"Can I help you?" came the forcefully subdued voice, as if trying to suppress laughter. It was distinctively feminine. Naruto turned towards the voice, still grinning. The girl before him was probably his age, give or take a year. Long pink hair tied back in a high ponytail, smiling emerald eyes, and a somewhat more restrained grin than his own. The laughter was obvious in her face.

Naruto wasn't really used to girls his own age. He'd befriended a girl and her brother once back at the mansion, when he'd first been brought there, children of a servant. But from day one, they were strictly forbidden to associate with each other. Their short lived play of pretend had disintegrated into frowns and grumpy parents, who then moved out to look for work elsewhere. Now, staring in the smiling face of the pretty girl before him, he had no real idea what to do. So, he laughed, trying to dispel the awkwardness he was feeling. "Ummm, yeah. What do you recommend?" He chuckled again, scratching the hair behind his head, fluffing his shaggy, long spikes.

Leaning on the counter, she raised a brow at him, then at the menu. "Try the strawberry tart. Maybe a good strong black tea with honey too? We're pretty famous for our teas." She turned on that smile again, bright white teeth flashing. This girl seemed a little too happy.

He just stared at her for a moment, an unusual warmth creeping into his face. Maybe he was getting heat stroke from all the running? Naw, he felt fine. No, no, he was...blushing! Oh crap! "Uh, y-yeah, sounds great! You must know, you work here and all. My name is Naruto." After stringing the sentences together almost blazingly fast, he grinned. This was not good. He'd been taught all manners of social and political situations, not to mention how to speak to ladies. But this was not a lady. This was a girl. And girls, he'd never had training with. Now, he was making a total and utter fool of himself in a shop in front of the first pretty girl to engage him.

But she seemed to ignore his lacking social skills, nodded, and turned towards her work. Filling a cup with tea, her back was turned to him, and he couldn't help noticing her shoulders almost bouncing up and down with suppressed laughter. That bad, eh? He sighed. At least it was a learning experience. Finding a chair at a table at the corner of the restaurant, he tried to calm himself, telling himself over and over that he'd been trained for this sort of thing. But when she arrived with the order, he felt that heat spread to his face again, and he briefly wondered how his hair looked.

Naruto nearly had a heart attack when she sat down across the table from him, yelling towards a shadowy figure in the back that she was taking a break. "Y'know, most people don't introduce themselves to the cashier girl. But since you've graced me with your name, I'm sure you'd appreciate the sentiment." The laughter sprang back into her eyes as she extended a hand across the table. "Haruno Sakura, cashier girl and order taker extraordinaire."

"Haruno Sakura?" Naruto looked down at his tea, watching the steamy liquid swirl around in the mug instead of looking at her. "Cherry Blossoms of the Spring?" He finally glanced at her, then looked back down. "Fits," he said simply, before taking a big gulp of the steaming liquid. It was almost as if he felt no heat. In fact, he didn't. Raising a brow, suddenly distracted from the pretty girl, he squinched an eye. "Huh." He took another steamy gulp, before looking up at Sakura.

She stared at him as if he'd gone crazy, but that amused spark still hung in her eyes. "Wow. Never seen anyone drink boiling tea that way," she hummed, pursing his lips as she shifted in her chair. "You're pretty strange, Blondie. Can't say why you caught my attention, 'cause don't get me wrong, we get our fair share of crazies around him." Sakura watched his face droop at the word 'crazies', but then shook her head. "Not that your crazy or anything. But I saw you out the window. Most people in the city don't take the time to stare around at the buildings, much less have the utter stupidity to not watch for cars or pedestrians as they walk." His face drooped further. "Oh, light up...Er, I mean 'lighten' up. You just look like a kid who'd just been brought to the city for the first time with his parents."

Naruto just stared at her, dejectedly. This encounter wasn't going well. "Oh," was all he could manage, edging the tart towards himself, looking for some sort of distraction.

"Oh, c'mon. Naruto, right? Listen, I'm doing you a favor. Just keep your head up, all right?" She couldn't help but chuckle to herself. It seemed like the boy had the emotional extremes generally associated with a kid. When he was happy, his whole face showed it. When he was sad, the pleasant atmosphere in the place probably dropped a few degrees. "I'm just lookin' out for you. Did you live out in the outskirts all your life?"

Tearing his gaze up from the wooden grain of the table, he lightened some, but he seemed guarded now. "Uh, yeah, I guess you might say that. Never been in the city, so I guess, y'know, I'm just a bit overwhelmed and stuff, ne?"

Her mouth made a silent 'Ah' motion as she watched him eat the tart. "Where?"

The blonde muttered something around the tart, but said no more. Whatever he'd said, he'd purposefully made it sound unintelligible. That much she was sure of. Leaning her head on her hand, she just watched him for a second. Suddenly, she noticed the long black lines on his pale face. "Cool! You have tattoos! I didn't even know you could get them at your age. Or are you older than you look?"

Naruto was horrified. He tried not to show it, but apparently, the lines were not just figments of his imagination, as he'd silently convinced himself that morning. Trying to cover his face inconspicuously by sinking his head into his crossed arms on the table, he winced and again avoided the question. "Um, well, I'm seventeen. You?"

"Sixteen," hummed Sakura, frowning oh-so-slightly at the guy. He really didn't want to share anything. However, glancing at the clock, she winced. Her break was up. Standing, she grunted, then remembered something. "Oh, that'll be five-fifty, even," she said, picking up his plate and cup.

He nodded, taking off his backpack, and fishing around for his wallet. Frowning, he patted his pockets. Nothing. He looked through his backpack again. He knew he had money. He'd borrowed from the family coffers before he'd run into the city, and had plenty of cash.

_Stumbling when someone brushed roughly against him, he ignored the person and moved towards café._ He grunted as realization filled his eyes. "I've been pick-pocketed? All ready?" Throwing up his hands and burying them in his hair, he let out a muffled gurgle of frustration. "You gotta be kidding me! I've only been out here for an hour!"

Sakura was not amused. Maybe he had been pick-pocketed, or maybe he was lying. Either way, it was her butt on the line. "Listen Blondie, I'd love to chat about how unfortunate your life is and all, but I need to get the money." She briefly wondered why she hadn't taken the money from him before serving him. Oh, yeah, his stupid grinning. That, and that stupid laughter that she could barely cover at the time. Distractions, distractions. In the end, she'd still have to deal with the boss. Then again, watching him, she seriously doubted he was lying. "Whoa, whoa, calm down before you stomp holes into the floorboards. Listen, since you've been so chatty and interesting, I'll pay for you, _if_," she held up a finger, "if you remember not to be so stupid to lose your wits in the middle of the city. You're a victim waiting to happen, unfortunately."

He stared at her, then shook his head, crossing his arms across his chest. "I appreciate it," he said stubbornly, "But it was my mistake. You shouldn't have to pay for it. I'll just...wash dishes or something, huh? Do a little work for free to pay for it." He grinned again.

Stubborn and proud. Sakura sighed, then set her hands on her hips. "Listen, you either walk out of the café with your dignity intact, or I hoist you up by your underwear and throw you out. Do I make myself clear?"

Almost as soon as the words passed her lips, she could feel him running past her with a 'Thanksalot,bye!', and into the crowds outside. Then, she laughed softly, not really caring as the customers glanced up at her and gave her quizzical looks. That guy was just too hilarious.

---

Tsunade had had a hectic day as it was. Stupid, boring meetings, people bothering her with issues that really weren't her concern, medical files that needed signing, patients that needed looking after. And all the while, Delphi was practically yelling into her ear about something. She'd put off the city-mind as long as she could, until she couldn't take the constant nagging anymore. Stepping down into the basement levels of city, she stepped into Delphi. Literally. Here, everything was white. The brilliant lights were white, the technicians were dressed in white, the ground was white. The only thing that wasn't white was Delphi. She was grey.

Delphi had been grown, not assembled. Well, most of her had been grown. She was an organic machine, with the added bonus of sentience. She was a fluke, a mistake in the creation of a new super computer gone brilliantly wrong. Here, her essence was kept in a perfectly sterile environment. She had been grown with in the glass walls of the cavernous room, her tissue spread out around the underground dome. The technicians scurried about, monitoring the elaborate machine-mind, checking on the wiring, feeding her nutrients with syringes, or simply imputing new code in for her databases.

Walking to a monitor, Tsunade frowned at the screen. "What is it, Delphi? I realize you have an issue, but really, all day? I've been up to my elbows in work lately, you know that."

A figure materialized in the monitor, before projecting itself through a hologram projector. It was a woman, perhaps in her thirties, with long black hair, plump figure, and light grey eyes. This was how Delphi chose to manifest herself today. "I realize this, Tsunade. But I've been worried over something rather...well, critical."

Tsunade simply raised her brow. It was not in Delphi's nature to worry. Yes, she'd developed an almost motherly personality and fiercely devoted herself to her city, but she rarely worried about anything. "Well?"

"The Uzumaki House has lost their heir! And I cannot find him. He slipped from my awareness yesterday morning, and wouldn't even have thought to try and find him if their family hadn't asked me directly. I can't feel his signature anywhere! How is that even possible?"

Yes, how was that possible? The signature she referred to was the soft quantum signature inherent and unique to every living thing. Even when the creature died and decomposed, their signature, their unique mark, would filter into the air, the ground, the water, and Delphi would be aware of it. But now, if the Uzumaki heir could not be found, he had been abducted by aliens with signature altering tech, or...he was outside the city-state. Both sounded totally impossible. Nobody had been outside the city in nearly a millennia. Despite the technical difficulties, there were guards stationed at every thoroughly sealed exit. Chakra users, no less. And there was very good reason for it.

"Well..." Tsunade carefully considered her words. "Why would you lose track of him, and just him? Was there something unusual about that night?" Her mind raced. There had been an earthquake, but that wasn't unheard of around here. Rare, yes, but still not totally out there.

"Other than the earthquake, no. I did notice he was going to explore the house that day, but he often did that anyway. Do you know him?"

"No, not personally," said Tsunade, pulling up readouts of the night before last. Nothing very unusual. There was an insignificant dip in the volume of serotonin right after, but that could be remedied. She attributed Delphi's frazzled behavior to that, and made a note to replace it. "However, I have heard of him. A good, subservient child, if his parents can be believed. Of course, he is kept a strict secret from the other Houses, but I'm not affiliated with any of the Houses directly." She tapped at the keyboard again, brushing a stray hair from her face. "Nothing, Delphi. You're healthy as you've ever been. Maybe it's just a glitch in the code. I'll have someone check it over, and then we'll try and get somewhere. In the meanwhile, I'll have a few people look for him. He shouldn't be in any danger. I mean, this _is_ Konoha. Also, try and see if anyone says his name."

"I have, but the locations are mostly in the mansion, where they can't find him anyway. There was a disturbance at the front door of mansion, where a guard had tried to stop the heir. But he's in the city somewhere, and I can't split my attention so much." The image of Delphi sniffed in resignation. "I'm not omniscient, you know."

"Yeah, yeah. Just try and concentrate on the sewage management below streets for now. They have a backup in the lower seventh sector. See if you can scope out the mess, mayhap?"

Delphi crossed her arms and frowned. Then, she fizzled out existence, muttering about handyman duties.

Tsunade chuckled, slipped a needle of serotonin into the grey tissue, and set the glass panel back in place. "What a woman."

---

Sky waned from light, to less light, to even less light, as the city began to fall asleep. Naruto had spent the entire day wandering around aimlessly in the streets, not really caring where he was going, and not really bothering to remember the street names. And for a long while, he realized he was going in big circles, but didn't bother to alter his course. He'd stop in shops to gaze at trinkets, antiques, packaged foods, jewelry, pets, anything that caught his fancy. The blonde couldn't buy anything, but that was a moot point. The teen could barely contain his joy at being able to wander around in a world far vaster than the ever changing mansion. This place had far more variety, flavor, smell, texture, and color. He'd grip onto the straps of his ragged green backpack, and almost skip in his joy. At one point, he even run down the streets, whooping and hollering, just because he could.

But now, as twilight filtered into the dome, he found himself in the middle of the city's park, utterly and totally spent. He'd had energy for a long time, but his body was running on empty. The trees of the park were lush and full, caught in the vibrancy of summer. Long, meandering paths of pebbles wandered through the park's low hills, meadows, along lakes, over bridges, and around an amphitheater. Big, fancy streetlights had been made to look like old-fashioned flame lanterns were set in the ground along the throughways of the park, illuminating their patch of stone silently into the night. No one was out and about but the lone blonde, who'd flopped himself on the grass beneath a tree.

Tugging on a branch, he frowned up at the foliage as the moon was covered, revealed, covered, revealed by the leaves swaying in the soft wind. "Should I go back?" he muttered to himself. The gnawing anger that had been dulled by his excitement now came back in the still of the night, and he fantasized briefly about a big bowl of ramen, a food he'd rarely been allowed to eat in the mansion. "Nngh, I'm so hungry," he complained out loud, growling in frustration, rubbing his stomach, "And I can't just sleep out here in the grass." The air was all ready beginning to cool. Standing, he walked towards the amphitheater. Maybe he could sneak into the building he'd seen behind the stage and spend the night there.

Rounding the corner of the building, he brushed a hand on the wall, a dim yellow light casting only the immediate area in light. And that too disappeared in a flicker.

Two pairs of hands swiftly grabbed him from behind. One pair around his mouth and eyes, the other around his waist as it grabbed him and pushed him against the wall. He grunted, surprised by the sudden and inexplicable turn of events. Was he being kidnapped or something? In Konoha? Impossible. Delphi would be notified.

But Delphi didn't come. He blinked, ready to fight viciously with his abductor, growling around the hand on his mouth. It felt surprisingly soft and gentle against his lips. But before he could attempt to, the arms around his waist let him go as they opened the door to the stage storage house and pushed him in, following him and locking the door. Turning in the pitch black of the storage room, he frowned. "Hey! What's going on! What's the big idea!"

"Oy, Blondie, keep your voice down." A light flicked on, revealing a smirking Sakura, standing by another girl. The new girl had blonde hair as well, which she kept in a loose ponytail on her back. What was with pretty girls and ponytails anyway?

"S-Sakura?" Naruto blinked in the sudden light, trying to struggle out of the prop bed he'd fallen into when pushed. "What...are you doing? And who's she?" His face went from surprised to angry.

"Whoa, lookit him. Totally into this, ain't he?" The blonde girl spoke suddenly, smirking and glancing him up and down. "Pretty cute. I feel kinda bad now about grabbing him like that." She paused, then winked at Naruto, thoroughly flustering him. "Eh, I take that back. You're pretty muscled for looking so scrawny, Blondie."

The blush spread from his ears and cheeks to his entire face as Naruto tried to maintain his anger. That girl wasn't helping. "My name's not Blondie. It's Naruto." He crossed his arms, growling slightly, trying to keep the pretense of anger as it evaporated. After all, he'd never been so popular. "I'd absolutely love to know what's going on here."

Sakura pushed her friend softly, then rolled her eyes at her most recently pilfered prize. "Calm down, Whiskers. This is pretty simple. We _noticed _you. Well, _I _noticed you," she corrected softly as she sat down on an arm of a stage chair. "Ino here didn't do much."

"Hu-huh?"

Ignoring Ino's looks of annoyance, Sakura continued. "Well, yeah. Noticed you. You can use chakra."

How did she know?

"You see, that's sort of what I do," continued pink-haired girl, ignoring his look of shock. "I can use chakra too, like Ino here, and a few others. Chakra has manifested itself differently in others. The amount of chakra and the specific affinity it offers are totally unique as well." Wiping her hands of some dust she'd unfortunately sat herself in, she stood, brushing her bottom as well. "My affinity, or rather, ability, is to be able to sense chakra alignment and volume. I get a sort of tickle all over my body."

What was she talking about? Naruto didn't understand any of this. Yeah, he could use chakra, but in no way he knew how. He'd never had it manifest in him. The Kyuubi had noticed it though, so, it was possible that this girl, who claimed she was able to use chakra as well, wasn't making this up. "You...you did?"

Sakura nodded. "Yeah." She walked over to him, grabbed his arm, and leaned in close to his face. She smirked as the blush blossomed again. Naruto could smell her breath. Blueberries and coffee. "You practically tickled me to death, you know." Stepping back, she cracked the door open and peeked outside. "Which is why I couldn't keep a straight face around you until I figured out how to block your chakra out of my body." Closing the door, she sauntered back and smirked at him. "That means you generate an inhuman amount of chakra. Most of the others barely registered, and they aren't weaklings."

Ino leaned against the wall, flapping a hand like a mouth at the back of Sakura's head. "Blah, blah, blah, Forehead, you talk like you moonlight at as an old lady teacher. Dry and boring." She turned her attention on Naruto, wearing the smirk that was so popular today. "Don't stress yourself. Sakura likes to preach to the wind in her free time, ne?" She was promptly smacked in the head with a dusty pillow. Sputtering, Ino simply dropped the pillow, unwilling to pursue the fight.

"My rude friend here can manipulate shadows to some extent, that's her ability. Which is why the light was kind enough to go out all of a sudden."

Ino saluted from her place at the wall. Her shadow waved at him from behind her.

Naruto stared at them dumbly. It made sense, but this was all going way to fast. It'd only been a day since he'd first stepped out of the house, and all ready, he's being kidnapped by crazy teens who can use chakra. "What...what do you want?"

Sakura smiled full of reassurance and triumph. "We want you to join us, Naruto." She clapped her hands together, and patted him on the shoulder.

"Join the Hidden Shinobi of Konoha."

----ooo----

Today's chapter?

_**Run by Snow Patrol**_.

See if you can find the slight references I made in the text. But only if you think you're smarter than me and my poorly disguises attempt at wittiness.

And the title of the actual story is a song by a band I recently found. I'm not telling you who it is, but if you think you know, review me your guess.

I realize the characters are slightly OOC. Especially Sakura. I hope it's not too pronounced, and if it is, please say so. I'd hate to annoy fans. XD Or I might not care at all what you think. Either way, REVIEW! I love those things. It lets me know I'm not just writing into the void!

-Raz


	3. A Billion Tons of Light

_**A Billion Tons of Light**_

"No."

Just like that. No.

"No?"

Tsunade sat behind the large wooden desk, staring across it furiously. Her fingers practically gouged furrows into the varnish of the polished countertop. This was not good. "How can you deny me this one, simple little thing?" This was a simple request. Very simple. In fact, it was stupid even to ask. "It's just for a few days, until we can locate the person."

"No. You have Delphi for that."

She could feel her teeth clench involuntarily. The snake-like man was serious, quiet, and very, very to the point. Pale skin, snake-slit eyes, long black hair trimmed and cut perfectly. A business suit. This was Orochimaru, the leader of the one and only chemical refinery and recycling plant in the city. And one of the richest people in the city. With such wealth comes paranoia, apparently, as he'd been the only person independent of the Regent to train and hire bodyguards and fighters.

"I just need four, perhaps five men, that's all," she bit off each word carefully, "What could you possibly need them for? And it's just a search party! Don't our days together in the Guard mean anything? This a request of a friend to a friend." Hardly, but whatever needed to be done. The Uzumaki House was practically screaming down her ear for their heir, and she had no intention in jumping into the politics of the Houses.

"No. And I hardly think you should be groveling to me, Tsunade. Jiraiya would probably frown upon it, wherever his soul may be." The statement was bland, pitiless, and condescending.

That nearly pushed the Head doctor over the edge. "That's a low blow, Orochimaru," she snarled. "Jiraiya was a man who was not above humiliating himself before an old friend for a favor of importance." Her dead husband's legacy had left it's mark on the Royal Guard as it's ranking officer. Orochimaru had once admired that. Now, he was virtually dancing on the man's grave.

The business man just sneered. "Why don't you go back to your pretty brain in the cellars of the city? If you need a search party, then obviously, the brain had a bit of a hiccup." He waved her away. "I'm busy, Doctor. I assume you know the way out?"

A hand gripped his shirt, and he calmly looked down at the fisted fingers squeezing the expensive fabric. "You'll wrinkle me, Tsunade," he said finally, following the arm up to her face and the accompanying fist by her ear. "And violence is hardly what we're about here in Konoha. I suggest you let go."

She'd lost. She knew it before Delphi muttered warnings in her ears. And she knew it before the guard placed a hand on her shoulder, pulling her off. So she let herself be tugged out, glowering at the once friend.

"A pleasure seeing you again, Tsunade."

She'd known it as soon as that smile split those pale, thin lips.

---

"Gah!"

That laughter again. Ringing laughter. It was always on the edge of his conscious mind. But it was gone before he sat up in the bed, wiping sweat from his forehead. Naruto ran a hand over his face, brushing the blonde hair from his eyes. That dream. There was a dream. He couldn't remember it, but it was definitely there. He grunted in frustration, before glancing around the room. "Wha-oh...Yeah." White walls, blue shag carpet, a small door leading to an adjoining bathroom, and another leading into the hall. The guest bedroom. Sakura's guest bedroom.

As he kicked off the sheets, he sat on the edge of the bed, his toes wiggling in the thick carpet, frowning softly and rubbing his suddenly burning stomach. The mark. It took him a second to realize why he was here.

"Good mornin', Blondie. Whoo, check out the wicked tattoo on your stomach." Sakura leaned against the open bedroom door.

With a soft 'eep', Naruto drew the covers around his body. Luckily, he had boxers on, but he wasn't used to girls randomly walking into his room. "Would you knock!" he shouted, hurling a throw pillow towards her.

She caught it, winked, then pointed at some clothes she'd just thrown on the bed. "C'mon. We gotta get going if you want to get there soon."

"Where?" His mind was still fuzzy from that almost-remembered dream. But the more he was awake, it slipped like sand through his fingers. He ground his palm into his forehead, grunting.

"You know where," she said, winking, pointing at the floor beneath her feet. "The meeting? Shinobi? Eh?"

"I thought I said no," grumbled Naruto, trying to throw on his pants and keep decent in front the girl. Struggling, he slipped into them, before throwing her a cursory glance. "I didn't, didn't I?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean anything. You were tired, you were grumpy, and you were off-put by Ino's flirtatious behavior, ne?"

"No," he said again, pulling on his black shirt. "I really should go back to...well, I need to get back home, really. My parents'll worry about me." He tried a smile, but wiped it away. He didn't want to go back. But he didn't want to get mixed up with a bunch a teens who probably took acid-trips wherever it was they hid out, talking loudly about shinobis and chakra. "I really appreciate you putting me up and all, though."

Without warning, her hand swooped in on his ear and pinched it, making him stand on his tiptoes, shirt hanging around his neck, wincing comically. "All righty. Now that I have your attention, and because you'll repay my favor of letting you sleep here _while _taking the heat for bringing home random strangers, you'll be taking a trip to at least see the place. Then, you'll make your decision, all right?"

"Ah! Ow! Leggo! Leggo! Fine!" Naruto pulled back, nursing his ear. It wasn't really the pain that was bothering him. It was the indignity. "I need this thing, you know!" he growled, pointing at his ear.

"Then get dressed, get downstairs, get fed, and get in gear."

She stalked from the room, smirked, and closed the door.

He quickly complied.

---

Breakfast was a quick affair, if anything could be said of it. He barely had time to grab a plate of toast before she pushed him forcefully into a car, revved the electric engine, and sped off into the city. They drove in silence, not much to say between them. They were following the Wall, as it was simply known, separating them from who knows what. That was were the Regent himself made his residence, deep in the thick and long wall surrounding their city-state. A dark and shadowy figure, his existence and attributes had long spiraled into mythology and legend, but he made his presence known through laws passed along into the little world, and, indirectly, the people felt his touch through the Royal Guard. He was never seen, never directly heard from. The reason was probably safety, but Delphi made that considerably easier. In the end, it was just paranoia. It was a dynasty in every true sense.

Naruto slumped against the window of the car, before finally skittering his eyes over to Sakura. She stared right back, raising a brow. He nearly jumped where he stood, but decided that would be far from the dignified and mature air he'd been trying to project.

"You never said your last name, Blondie."

He blinked. "Huh?"

"Your last name? And you never told me where you came from. What's with all the secrets?" Her hands played on the steering wheel, her attention shifting from him to the road, and back. "Seriously, you need to chill. Be more transparent. You won't make friends easy that way."

"How do you know I don't all ready have friends?" He was grumpy, and he decided to flaunt it. Maybe she'd leave him alone with all the questions.

"Well, for one, you're way too closed off." They hit a bump, and she jostled slightly in the chair. "And you're too uncomfortable. I've seen shy, and I've seen hostile, but you just don't seem to have much contact with people at all." She talked as if she'd pegged him, and Naruto didn't like it. "But, you know, that'll change eventually. You just need to relax a bit."

Naruto bit his tongue to keep from growling at her. Who did she think she was? "You don't know me," he grunted, turning away to stare at the large forest they were approaching.

"I'm trying to, but that's my point," she said frowning, blowing hair from her eyes. "I'm being friendly, and you're returning it with a good ol' 'No thanks'." She winced suddenly, then turned towards him. "Wait...did--did something happen in your childhood?" Even though he was turned, she could see his jaw clench. "I don't want to be insensitive or any-"

"Shut up." They entered into the forest, the trees casting their green, shadowy light down, dappling their car in fuzzy splotches of sunlight. This one was far bigger than the one outside of the mansion, but still not enormous. There was only so much room in the city-state, and only so many resources. This was probably a protected wood, kept safe from lumbering fingers. They drove a fair distance down the dusty road, before she pulled off the side, and jumped out.

Naruto glanced around. Nothing there. "What are you doing? There's nothing here?"

Sakura tossed him a small device, identical to the one she was clipping onto her hair, and pressed a button. "Put that on your clothing or something, and press down. It's a mini EMP emitter. It screws up Delphi's sensors for a little while."

"Why are we hiding from Delphi?"

"Cause she can't know where we're going." She turned into the forest, and onto what looked like a deer trail. Naruto followed her dutifully. The trees slowly began to thicken, and the path became increasingly harder to follow. Without warning, they stumbled out of the underbrush and into a clearing. An empty clearing. Nothing there. No sign of life at all. Nonetheless, Sakura stopped dead in the clearing and grinned, spreading her hands like a ballerina who'd just finished perfectly. "Voila!"

Naruto stared at her nonplussed, then he just looked agitated. "Sakura, c'mon. This isn't a joke, is it?"

Winking at him coquettishly, she reached into her mouth, grabbed a molar...and yanked it out with little resistance.

"Holy crap!" Nausea swept through his gut. "Is that your...your tooth?"

"Nope." She held out the molar towards him, rolling it between her fingers to show him the bottom. There, between the roots, there was a small indented button. "It's false. You ever seen a garage door opener? Same thing." She pressed the button with a paperclip she'd withdrawn from nowhere, and replaced the tooth with a soft click as the ground began to rumble.

Slowly, like a cavernous black mouth, the earth began to lift, roots and clumps of earth falling softly onto a stone stairway leading into the belly of the world. "You ready, Blondie? Cause I'm about to blow more than your mind."

As he stared down into the world beneath his own, he felt a breeze come whipping from underground and ruffle his hair, beckoning him into its cool embrace. A billion tons of lights twinkling in the depth, like jewels catching the light. Something ancient in him stirred, growled in recognition, and constricted his heart in glowing claws. He passed his hand over his stomach, then looked up to Sakura.

"Yeah."

The earth swallowed them both.

---ooo---

This was originally a much longer chapter, complete with Tsunade learning more about Naruto and such, but I decided to cut it off and leave you with a cliffhanger. Just for the fun of it.

Anyway, today's song. **_A Billion Tons of Light_** by Vega4. Excellent song. Utterly excellent. Look it up!

I made a few refrences to other things in this chappie, but I'm too lazy to point them out to you. Figure it out yourself.

-Raz


	4. Sandstorm

**Sandstorm**

Why was it that the walls were always painted taupe? Was it supposed to be soothing? It was so ugly, even worse than the egg-shell white of the hospital. Tsunade much more preferred the warm hues of the cafés and stores out in downtown. Then again, this wasn't exactly downtown. She folded her hands politely, nodding softly as a servant set a cup of tea beside her arm on the mahogany table. The Uzumaki's sat across from her, staring at her hopefully. They wanted their heir. But not in the same way a parent wanted a child. Much in the same sense that a businessman wanted his investment; and it was exactly that.

Clearing her throat as an initiation of conversation, she bowed her head to them. After all, they had once been the most powerful House among the Four Families. And the only one without a specific genetic ability. "Sir, Madame," she started hesitantly, "As you may all ready know, I have not been able to locate your heir." Their frowning stares were completely expected. It wasn't as if she could perform miracles. "He seems rather elusive, and I need more information, I'm afraid. Starting with reasons of adoption, his biological parents perhaps, access to Delphi's log of specific dates in his life, anything that would be helpful in figuring out why and how he thinks."

"Madame Tsunade," began the female Uzumaki. Araika. "You must first assure us that there is no possibility of kidnapping. Subterfuge. Because, if so, providing you with valuable and sensitive information would undermine us and our need for secrecy."

Tsunade blinked, then frowned softly in thought. There hadn't been any reports of others gone missing from Delphi's subsystems, and there hadn't been any outstanding accounts of violence or odd occurrences. There was very little chance of Naruto being kidnapped or forced against his will. She explained it to them in layman's terms. No need to bog them down with Delphi's subsystem data sheets.

This time, it was the man who spoke, known as Sekkun. He was a milder persona compared to his wife, and even smiled as he nodded in understanding. "Very well, our aides will bring up the data. We will watch and research with you, of course." He nodded idly at a man sitting behind a computer monitor at the far end of the conference room. Here, deep in the Uzumaki mansion, there was very little chance of being bugged or spied on. A projector above their heads flickered to life, painting the wall at the far end of the room with a still image of a new born child. The lights dimmed accordingly as the still image began moving. It was an old video log by Delphi.

Off screen, a man could be heard weeping softly, the cause of sorrow evident. A woman lay on a gurney, covered in blood and placental fluids, still, her eyes wide and staring at the sky that wasn't there. A doctor's white clothing passed before camera lens, but it didn't pan out. For the briefest moment, the child could be seen again, a shock of blond hair matted against his head, suckling his thumb. A pair of hands came next, grasping the child with calloused, strong hands and bringing him close to his chest, his face cut off by the camera angle.

"This is a video log recording Naruto's birth. He'd almost been a still-born. They had to perform a C-section, which, unfortunately, killed his mother due to complications." There was no compassion in Sekkun's voice, just soft understanding. He'd gone through a similar experience, except it was the child whom had died, and not Araika. They both went silent for a moment. "Unfortunately, this is the only angle immediately allowed to us. All other data and logs on his birth, his biological parents, and even the doctor, are strictly classified by Delphi. I doubt the Regent himself could get the information necessary if he so wished."

Tsunade set her jaw. She'd seen this scene before, but the people had been different. Too many times she'd had to suffer silently as someone wept over a dead child or a dead mother. She blocked it out, as she always did. A doctor was in the business of death as much as she was in the business of life. She waved at the Uzumaki's again. "Fine, the date of adoption?"

Another still image. "Nothing spectacular. We adopted him when he was seven." Araika this time. The picture displayed a sad looking boy in the midst of a playground, sitting on a swing dejectedly, his legs frozen in the act of drawing in the red mulch covering the ground. His eyes were hidden beneath spikey, unruly hair. "We had tested blood of other children, and found he was the only one capable of chakra manipulation." The woman paused, then frowned slightly. "You must understand, we did this out of need. If we could have been more compassionate, we would have, you understand. But this adoption was a necessity for the Uzumaki House. You understand our apathy relating to the child, do you not?"

Why was a head of a House explaining their rational to her, Tsunade couldn't fathom, but she nodded anyway. She needed to patronize them for now, of course. No time to sit about and idly wonder what Naruto thought about all this. The still image again turned into a video, where children scampered past the boy in play, and two tall figures approached him. The angle changed, revealing the two House heads as they motioned at him to follow. Naruto simply stared up at them, his eyes wide with a sliver of a half forgotten hope. Tsunade bit her lip. The scene continued, with long explanations of the adoption process, and the signing of papers, the endless chattering by the orphanage's staff, and so on.

The scene changed, revealing the new family as they clambered into the long car just outside the door of the orphanage. Naruto was still mistrustful of the entire thing, it seemed, as he kept quiet and clambered into the car, his face twisted in youthful hope that all this wasn't a dream, and an expression akin to unbelief. He didn't want to trust that these two stern people were now his parents. "Your name is now Uzumaki." Sekkun's voice. "And your duty is to the House." That hope wasn't fulfilled. _Now_ she felt that twinge of sympathy in her heart

"You're my parents...right?" Naruto sat expectantly on the leather of the car chair, gripping the seat eagerly. He was wary. "I can call you mom and dad?"

Araika spoke in her normal, curt voice. "No, we don't believe it would be appropriate. And we are your parents only in title. You are an investment. A very important one. Take heart, young one, your life now has purpose." She didn't smile.

The hope in Naruto's eyes fell, leaving him the same boy he'd been on the swing not long ago. "Oh," was all he managed, staring at the carpet below him, his head hung and tipped to the side.

"Now, now, we shall give you good food, comfort, and education. All so that you may one day continue the Uzumaki name. And, know that you are very special. You can control chakra. A key to unleashing the sacred power of our House."

Sekkun. "Yes, that's right. You must stay in the mansion, of course, for if the other Houses discovered that we'd tried to resurrect our dying lineage, they would no longer tolerate us." There was an uncharacteristic bitterness to the man's voice. "They still fear us, it seems."

Tsunade noticed that the boy on the couch, ten years ago, understood immediately what this relationship was. Nothing more than a commodity, stored and protected to benefit a family that could find no other hope than outside themselves. But this was not her business, to bother with the affairs of the Houses. She was a mediator. She was a doctor. But she was only trusted as such due to her neutral disposition. Her emotions would only muddy the waters, so to speak.

The next hour was spent watching key points in Naruto's life, his upbringing, his academics, his behaviors, his attitudes.

And her understanding of this young man grew. However, there was one more point of interest. "Bring up the day of his disappearance."

Both parents hesitated, stared at each other, then sighed simultaneously. It was almost comical, and yet... "We can't. Delphi doesn't record everything in the mansion. And he seems to have been able to somehow slip past Delphi's subsystems. The boy is clever, if anything." Araika didn't seem particularly pleased to be relating this information, but she apparently realized the necessity. "Perhaps it was his own doing that Delphi no longer sees him. Perhaps he'd slipped a virus into her system?"

"No. The code is fine. It's as if he simply disappeared." Tsunade frowned, rubbing her forehead softly, her fingernail scraping against the jewel set in her forehead. "Nngh, this is frustrating," she muttered, then straightened. "Well, I thank you earnestly for the information, Sir and Madame Uzumaki."

"Of course," Sekkun smiled, picking up a folder, and retrieving a video log of their meeting from the man at the monitor. "Anything to have our heir back."

Tsunade smiled politely, then excused herself. She really didn't want to spend anymore time with these two.

---

There was little that could have prepared the young heir as the ground above their heads closed, swallowing them and casting them into darkness. Except, it wasn't quite so dark. He could see just fine, the passage lit by oddly phosphorus stone embedded into the walls. Frowning, he drew a hand over the wall, noticing the faint carvings and intricate decorations of the wall. They seemed to glow beneath his touch, the archaic letters and symbols following his finger with a faint light.

"C'mon, Blondie, I ain't got all day."

He turned towards Sakura, half mesmerized by the walls, half confused. "What is this place?"

A smile tugged her lips as she motioned down the ever descending steps. "You'll have to see it for yourself."

As they walked down, the walls steadily changed, more light cast by far more stones as they walked deeper. Occasionally, doors dotted the passage, leading to heaven knows where. Their steps on the stone rang out as they walked in silence, and Naruto was reminded of the older sections of the mansion. Here and there, there were windows gazing into earth, as if the whole structure had once been above ground, and then collapsed into the earth.

Finally, they came upon a massive double door blocking their way any further. Sakura pressed a hand against it and walked in. "Remember, try and smile. Be polite. And all that other social crap." The door creaked on its iron hinges, and she stepped through, Naruto tailing closely.

The room they'd walked into was enormous, more of a spiral cavern reaching towards an earthen sky. It was a building, no question, with symmetrical walls and the like, and not an actual cavern. However, here and there, stalactites hung from beneath balconies and dripped water down towards the first floor, where a massive spiral with a triangle had been set into the floor in a mosaic. All around them rose the walls of the structure, multi-tiered with separate floors. Shelves full of scrolls and leather bound books hugged the walls. It seemed more like a library than anything else.

"Oy, oy! Check it out. Sakura found us someone new." The voice echoed starkly in the library, punctuated by a yapping dog. Naruto snapped his head down from the coned ceiling to the boy who'd spoken. He had a wolfish smile, his teeth reaching towards the two lines coming down below his eyes. Tattoos? A large dog with whitish fur trotted over to Naruto and sniffed, made a soft grunting sound, then trotted back to his owner. "Haha. Lookit him, with his mouth all open." The boy stepped forward, pulling down his fuzz lined hoody. "Names Kiba," he said curtly, shoving his hand out to Naruto. "And you've all ready met Akamaru. Welcome to our little club."

Naruto took the hand, but took the time to glance around the room. Old furniture had been brought here, apparently, because none of it seemed old enough to actually belong to the room. There were several others sitting on them, reading, playing a game of chess, or just looking at him. Kiba led him around, Sakura tailing him and introducing the others. Ino, he knew, and she gave him a wink, before turning back to the magazine she was scanning.

Nara Shikamaru, two Hyuugas, a sulky looking Uchiha, and another girl named Tenten. Naruto knew three of the off-hand, and had recognized them immediately.

The Uchiha, named Sasuke, was perhaps the most dangerous to Naruto specifically, simply because the Uchiha House had long opposed the Uzumaki. But, unfortunately (or fortunately), Sasuke was the last of his kind. He was the House's head and sole occupant, due to a fatal, contagious eye disease somehow attributed to the unique structure of the Sharigan. Sasuke had been miraculaously immune, but mourned the loss of his family far harder than most would. Without family, his blood was without legacy, and everything rested on him.

The Hyuuga, namely Hinata, made a more comfortable introduction, simply because she seemed timid, almost too shy to shake Naruto's hand when he was introduced. She avoided his stare, and looked down with the characteristic pale, pearly eyes of the House. She was the heir, that much was true, but it seemed her cousin Neji, a stoic young man on any account, would have been far better suited to the task of the leading the most prominent House in Konoha. _For now,_ Naruto couldn't help but think wryly. They nodded at each other.

Tenten was almost boring looking, until she spoke, and her whole face lit up to include the warmth that seemed intrinsic to her. She dragged him down onto the couch and began chatting with him amicably as Kiba rolled his eyes as he walked back to join Shikamaru. "Naruto, eh? Cool name. Where ya from? I'd say you're an Outer like me." Outer simply meant that the person was born in one of the outlying communities that were farther from main city.

The blonde frowned internally, but smiled, feeling the cracked leather of the couch cushion beneath his hands. "Yeah, that's right. From Komatsu." Any name would do.

Tenten smiled again, eyeing him up and down. "You know, you look really familiar. Are you sure I don't know you from somewhere?"

Neji glanced over towards them, and nodded, apparently having listened to their conversation. "Yes, you seem oddly familiar to me as well. Perhaps my clan knows your family?"

Biting his tongue, Naruto frowned, as if in thought. "No, doubt it."

"What did you say your last name was?" Neji again. He was staring at him with an intensity that would not soon be forgotten. Naruto suddenly wished for a blindfold to wrap around the boy's eyes. Or a stick. A pointy stick.

"I didn't," hummed Naruto deftly. This was not something to let slip to the two House heirs.

Tenten dropped the subject, but Neji continued to stare at him. "How can we trust you if you do not tell us your surname? What if you are a spy?"

From her seat near the Uchiha, Sakura let out a snort. "Are you kidding me? This guy got his wallet lifted by Kiba in the middle of the day, in the middle of downtown, staring at the sky like he'd never seen anything like it before."

Kiba grinned sheepishly, then threw Naruto's wallet at the surprised blonde. "Yeaaahhh, forgot about that."

"There ya go," Sakura continued, running a hand through her hair. "If he doesn't want to tell you, he won't. Capisce?" She pointed at the Hyuuga absently. Clearing her throat, the girl carefully steered the conversation away from the subject. "Anyway, I bet your probably wondering what all this is about. You may not realize it, but we've just opened the door up to being discovered. It's a risk we took with everyone here. Admittedly, Sasuke and the Hyuuga clan were decidedly harder to get to, but, eh, we managed." Throwing a grin at Sasuke, she pointed at him. He ignored her completely.

"Why?" Naruto couldn't help but feel utterly at loss again. "What is this place? What are you all doing here?"

"That, Blondie, is for us to know, and for you to find out." Sakura grinned at him, then winked; he couldn't help but blush. She leaned forward in her seat, crossing her legs under her. "Listen, first off, you can never, ever tell anyone we're down here, or what we're doing." She staved off his questions with an upheld hand. "Whoa, whoa, before you ask me all those obvious questions, let me ask you something."

All eyes snapped to him as if on command. He wanted to fidget in his seat all of a sudden, and he almost did, but felt it wouldn't be professional, or something along those lines. "Shoot," he said as casually as he could.

"What do you desire most?" Sasuke had spoken for the first time, and he seemed as interested in this question as the others were.

"Well, explanations for one. Maybe a bowl of ramen," the blonde said, trying to alleviate the suddenly oppressive silence. None of them even blinked. "Oh, come on," he grunted, somewhat upset that his attempt at levity had fallen flat on its face, "What do you mean? We live in a practical paradise. No one goes hungry, no one hurts each other. Nobody wants anything."

Sakura frowned slightly. This was obviously not the answer she had been probing for. "Are you sure that's true, Naruto? Do you really know what goes on under the skin of this 'peaceful' world? You don't, apparently. You've been stupefied by the Regent, just like the rest, and very few know what we know. So," she paused, boring into him with firm, jade eyes. "I'll ask again. What do you want most? With every fiber of your being, or something that has crossed your mind while watching the world go by."

Almost unbidden, a single word flung itself from his lips and fell like a deadweight in the quiet room. "Freedom..." he trailed off, blinked, then frowned. The memory of desperately wishing to be free from the mansion surged to the surface, along with the faint smell of sulfur. "But I have it. Now, anyway."

Slowly, a humorless smile crossed Sasuke's face as he spoke the second time. "Tell me, ahou, what is the purpose of a wall?"

Naruto gave him a look of sheer incomprehension. But he answered. "Well, uh, to keep things in or out, right?"

"And what is the Wall doing, then? Have you ever wondered?"

Slowly, realization dawned on Naruto. "You...want freedom too."

"Everyone forgot what was outside the Wall long time ago, man." This time, it was Kiba who spoke, drawling his words, Akamaru cocking his head up him. He sat slouched beside Shikamaru, arms dangling behind him on the couch, legs crossed at the ankles and stretched full out before him. But despite his lax posture, he stared with the same intensity that everyone else seemed to possess. "And now, we're all just living here, stagnatin' behind millions of tons of concrete and chakra-sealed gates." He looked ready to spit. "The Regent just continues to take advantage of this, and the blind stupidity everyone seems to have fallen into."

"Whoa, whoa," Naruto almost laughed at the sheer absurdity, waving his arms before him. "So, what? You guys are staging a coupe? You want to take over the throne to see what's behind the wall?" He let his hands fall to his lap, suddenly irritated. "What are you guys? Kids who just can't resist the temptation to peek into a room you aren't supposed to go in? This is stupid."

"That's exactly the mentality we want to tear down," Ino spoke, apparently frustrated with Naruto's inability to comprehend their views. "This stupid idea that we're somehow doing ourselves a favor by hiding in here. You know the laws. Maximum two kids per family, no additional building without extensive permits, all these stupid limits on expansion of any kind."

"And what if there's something terrible out there?" The logic behind their arguments suddenly felt all the more hollow. "What if there's a very good reason why no one is allowed out there?"

"Then we should be told." Neji again. "Why keep this secret?"

"All right, all right." Naruto cleared his throat. "Let's say I agree with you guys. And, for the sake of argument, let's say I join you, right?" He held a finger to his forehead. "That makes a total, what, nine idiots against the entire Royal Guard? That's suicide and you know it. We're not even trained."

"Speak for yourself," grunted Sasuke. "And the Royal Guard is not the problem. Consider them a moot point, if you will. We have our ways that we aren't willing to reveal to you unless you swear allegiance."

Naruto sat back in the couch, glancing at Sakura, then at Ino, who both stared back as if silently willing him to join. "No," he said finally, sighing and scratching the back of his head. "This...no, this is stupid." However, in the back of his mind, he couldn't shake their words. Standing, he shoved his hands in his pockets, and walked towards the door. "I won't tell anyone, I swear, because, seriously, I don't think you'll be able to anything."

"Naruto!" Sakura stood and walked over to him, gripping his arm, trying to turn him around. He complied reluctantly, but his eyes were set. "Naruto, think about it at least. Our offer stands."

Spreading his arms out, the heir grunted. "Thanks for putting me up last night and all, but I gotta go. Gotta figure out what I'm doing from here, y'know? This whole thing is just too out there." He turned and walked through the doors, holding his hand up in departure, not bothering to look up. "I'll see you 'round, 'kay?"

The eight others just watched as he walked out and disappeared.

"Well? What now?" Tenten spoke. "We can't just let him walk out, can we?"

Sasuke frowned from where he sat. "Let him go. But we need someone to tail him and make sure he won't start blabbing." He paused. "He seems like the kind that would." His cold eyes pivoted over to Hinata. "What about you? You're the only one not currently busy with anything."

For the first time since the introduction, the girl spoke, looking up. "W-what? Me? Why? Neji would be better for this job, wouldn't he?"

"Yes," Sasuke spoke curtly, "but that's beside the point. Neji is unavailable. Follow the ahou. Report to us. And avoid making contact with him. I'll explain the situation to the Eye."

Apparently frustrated, the Hyuuga heir nodded anyway. "Very well," she sighed, glancing at Neji, whom had turned his gaze towards an open scroll. "But don't expect miracles."

"There's no worry of that," said the Uchiha plainly, frowning.

Hinata could feel soft anger flare at his words, but then dismissed it and stood and left. After all, she could use the stealth training.

---

Far from Delphi's prying eyes, far from human eyes, somewhere hidden and secret, dangerous and dark, a dark shadow passed through the cavernous network of tunnels far below the surface. The shadow didn't stop until he came to a massive metal door, padlocked and heavy, an elaborate scene of death, blood, and monstrous eyes having been stamped onto its dull, unpolished surface. He stepped through, then promptly shut the door. Moving into the cavern, he stopped before the two massive glass tubes in the center of the room, where a single figure stood, surveying the large stone gourd sitting on a pedestal between the cylinders. Something within the gourd rattled.

"So, the sand has begun to move," said the newly arrived shadow to the other. He walked forwards to stand beside the other. "The Bijuu of the Sand has awoken. That is hardly surprising, though. The Key itself has awoken."

"Kyuubi no Yoko? The Kitsune?" The other shadow turned from the sight, setting his piercing white eyes on the man before him. His black coat waved slowly, giving the illusion that the red clouds on the fabric were real; bloody nimbuses floating their way through a black sky. "How was this found out?" Then, he waved a hand. "Hardly important, actually. The Kitsune has somehow escaped then? How fortunate." He moved towards the odd stone vessel, and set a hand on it. The sand inside rattled and vibrated, before a muffled roar shrieked a him, tendrils of silicone smashing themselves against the walls of their prison. The only reason it was kept ineffective was because of the highly effective seal etched into the stone. He knew this. Excitement lit like fire in the back of his mind. "We can set the plan in motion then." He turned towards the other. "Bring him. We will begin the Sealing Ceremony now."

The other shadow nodded at two guards near the hall, and they sped out and off. Then he looked at the gourd again. "This seal will be difficult, especially if Shukaku is not cooperative. In fact, if I were a gambling man, I would say he'll be quite resistant."

"It hardly matters. The seal is perfect. However, I'm more curious about the Kitsune. Our knowledge on the vault was very specific, and even if the Kyuubi had been released by some idiot, then the vault would close them both in." A hand came out of the cloak to rub his chin thoughtfully. "Unless, of course, they performed a seal. Interesting. The Kitsune is no fool, and would have probably been the one to perform it. Few know such powerful sealing techniques." A twisted smirk crossed the man's face in the dark, the green glow from the glass cylinders. "Obviously, he would have made a weak seal, though. He'll try to get out."

"We mustn't let that happen," grumbled the other shadow, muttering slightly to himself after speaking. His eyes flicked towards the door lazily as a young man was dragged in, breathing heavily between his two captors. The shadow swiftly brought his eyes towards the other again. "I have something that may or may not be worth something, Leader. The same night of the earthquake, when the sand became active, the heir of the Uzumaki House vanished without a trace. Supposedly, not even Delphi can find him."

"A tremendous feat in and of itself." The Leader hummed, motioning absently at the tube on the left, which opened and allowed the men to throw their captive inside. The glass walls swiftly shut, trapping the individual inside, his face highlighted by the green glow. He couldn't have been more than nineteen. "The two must be more than coincidence." The cylinder on the left opened, and the Leader picked up the gourd and set it inside. Again, the glass came down with a hiss. "I want you to find the heir, and bring him in. He may very well have the Key sealed within him. It is an opportunity we cannot lose."

"We may use force then?" the shadow seemed neither excited, nor bored. Somewhere in between the two, he managed to seem simply sinister.

"Yes," the Leader sighed, "But use discretion, Itachi. I don't want a mangled corpse. And I want him alive." Waving the man off, the Leader turned towards the cylinder containing the gourd. Performing a rapid succession of hand signs, he paused before the last one, swept by a feeling similar to Naruto's far more innocent experience. Then, he moved his fingers.

The gourd erupted in trillions of grains of sand, their luminescent nature capturing the green glow of their prison. They roared, formless, and furious, before looking for any possible escape. The Leader couldn't help but allow himself a shiver of anticipation as the avalanche of grains found their passage to the boy, trickling through a tube connecting them at their tops before cascading down, trying to drown the human that dared to stand in their way. The boy moaned, muffled behind the glass, finally opening his eyes to stare at the Leader, his dead azure gaze flickering with pain and emotion.

Abruptly, the sand realized there was no way out. It roared again, a howling, reverberating thing that shook the ceiling. So it went to the only place possible. Into the boy. The particles rattled and grabbed at his clothes, tore them off, and tore into his flesh. They pushed themselves into his pores, under his eyelids, down his throat, in his ears. Any and every orifice was clogged, stuffed full of sand. Soon, all of it was gone, just a boy, standing rock solid in the middle of his glass prison, covered in sand. He couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't breath, and felt as if his insides had turned to stone.

Swiftly, the Leader clasped two hand together, and pushed them to his forehead, just above and to the right of his left eyebrow. "Seal!" he bellowed into the suddenly silent room, echoing and rebounding off the rock walls.

Nothing happened for several long moments. The boy stood as if dead, a statue of sand. Finally, a faintly discernable fissure ran the length of the boy-statue, leaking trickles of silicone. Others spread like a spiderweb from just above the boy's left eyebrow, crackling and shattering the sand entombing him, before finally allowing him to collapse onto the metal floor, gasping raggedly, his hands curling in his shaggy red hair. A faint trickle of blood fell from a kanji on his forehead. Love. Without further ado, he passed out, drooling sand.

The Leader sighed, lowering his hands, fingers shaking with chakra exertion. "Perfect." Then, a soft smirk twitched at the edge of his lips.

"Let's see how Konoha deals with a sandstorm."

----ooo----

First off, I'd like to say that I did not proofread this. I simply don't have the time. And I wanted to submit one last chappie before I went on vacation (Aye!). I also apologize for the endless talking and such. But sometimes, it's necessary to get these sorts of chaps out of the way before we delve into violence, drama, and tinges of romance. For what makes a story better than being informed? Not much. ;P

This chapter is also horrifically long. 11 pages in Word. Blah. Must be some sort of record for me. But anywho, I made a reference in the very first sentence of the this chapter. Yep. Try and figure it out. Hint? It's a movie.

**Sandstorm** by DJ Skribble. Download it!

-Raz


	5. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

**Kiss Kiss Bang Bang**

Warm sunlight and the smell of ripening wheat sat upon his face heavily as he tucked his hands into his pockets, glancing up at the brilliant orb in the sky. Sighing, the blonde muttered something inaudible as he kicked at the dirt road beneath his feet. "Should've at least gotten a ride back to the city," he growled to himself, glancing about swiftly, perhaps to see if any cars were coming by. Maybe he could hitchhike.

There was nothing. No sign of life at all. The forest he'd just left lay behind him, quiet save for twittering birds; a dark line on an otherwise bright day. Now wheat fields stretched on and on, the side of the road lined with grass, then a never ending wooden fence just beyond the green blades. A summer-greened tree dotted the side of the road, offering him moments of shade from the heat, but it wasn't enough to keep him from sweating slightly.

Waving an inquisitive bug away from his face, he paused and sniffed. "Huh," he mused, stopping in the middle of the road. Since when did he _sniff_ things out? But he could smell something on a sudden wind. It smelled familiar...like someone. Turning towards the road, he glanced back and forth. No one. Not even a bird. But the agonizingly familiar smell of human and white plums did not grow fainter.

The blade came out of nowhere, a flurry of whistling air and flashing steel. It slammed into his arm, piercing the skin and nicking the bone, all in less than a second. Naruto screamed fitfully, but rolled out of the way as three more knives flew out from the stalks of wheat, thudding into the ground where he'd been less than a second before. "H-Holy Crap!" he managed to yell, before running into the wheat field opposite from dangerous steel. Two more flashed towards him as he dove into the waving yellow stalks and threw himself on his stomach, watching as they flew on into the endless amber.

Huffing harshly, he sprang to his feet and began running, clutching at his arm, the blade moving against his bone at every step. Grunting softly, he yanked it out, nearly blacking out at the accompanying pain. Adrenaline hit his blood stream, and he put out another bust of speed. Footsteps could be heard behind him as he ran blindly into the sea of ripening vegetation. _Crapohcrapohcrapohcrap_ ran through his mind like a mantra, his eyes wide, taking in every detail in the flurry of leaves. If he could hear the footsteps, it meant that his follower was close. He gripped the hilt of the throwing knife, but it had grown slippery with his blood, his right arm hanging limply beside him.

For the briefest of moments, the smell of white plums grew infinitely stronger, right before a lithe, short body slammed into him, tackling him to the ground. "Quiet," hissed, of all people, Hinata Hyuuga. She lay on top of him, her arm flung over his mouth as she gazed off in the distance, veins crisscrossing around her eyes. Pupiless eyes flicked back and forth then stilled. They found their target. But she didn't move. Didn't even breathe. And with her weight on Naruto's chest, he didn't either. Of course, he also passed out for a second or two...

His vision cleared finally as the pain in his arm receded, but Hinata was still there, lightly slapping his cheek. Her face was creased with worry, the Byakugan inactivated. However, she was still lying on top of him. "Are you all right?" she whispered harshly. All she received was a groan. "What?"

"Oooffff," he finally managed, wincing.

She blushed fitfully, despite the situation, and rolled off, but gripped his arm with a stronger hand than he'd expected, helping him to his feet. "We have to move. Someone's targeting you." She still spoke in a whisper, her eyes once again flicking back and forth.

"Who?" Naruto's world still spun dizzily, and the only thing still holding him up was the adrenaline pulsing through his raw veins. The pain in his arm had receded, oddly enough. Almost disappeared, in fact. The blade in his hand had stopped dripping blood and now began to dry and flake rusty chips. Gripping his head, he pressed a hand against his forehead, leaving a bloody imprint. "What's going on? How'd you get here so fast?"

"Not now," Hinata grunted, pulling him deeper into the fields. "Later." She raised a finger to her lips, still blushing. Busying herself with a small pouch strapped to her leg, she pulled out another knife and pushed it into his hand. It was a long blade, with the words 'Deo Vinde' stamped into the metal of the blade.

"Nice toothpick," he grunted, fingering the edge as they ran, managing to nick himself. A trail of blood leaked from the cut, but quickly stopped. In fact, so did the pain. Wiping the blood away, there was no cut. "Huh," was all he managed before sunlight hit his face again.

They broke through the wheat onto a tractor trail, but the Hyuuga heir didn't break stride, instead leading him up the meager road and around a bend. A small farmhouse came into view, complete with a little white picket fence, a red barn, and an accompanying silo. She angled towards it, hopped the fence, and yanked him towards the garage. A powerful looking green pickup sat in the middle of the driveway, half cast in shadow from the house. Without a word, Hinata tried the door. Open. Pushing the hapless Naruto inside, she yanked out some wires from below the dashboard, hotwired the car, and threw it in gear. A woman rounded the corner of the house just in time to watch the family car peel out, throwing driveway gravel every which way before taking off and out the gate before she could yell at them to stop.

Naruto's mantra began again, this time slightly more audibly. "OhcrapohcrapohcrapOHCRAP!!" A face peered out of the wheat as they flashed by, gears grinding as Hinata fumbled with the unfamiliar manual transmission. The face had a radio pressed to his mouth, his eyes wide with surprise. "He's calling in backup!"

Hinata frowned slightly, glancing out the side mirror. Then, she blanched. "Falcons," she grunted, her Byakugan activating as she spun the wheel, turning the truck straight back into the wheat. Naruto spun, just in time to see a Falcon swoop in, its black blades thwopping dully in the dusty air, the pilot's black helmet staring out at them from the cockpit. A second helmet in the Falcon stuck its head out the window and aimed a large canister at them. There was a dull 'thwomp' as needles burst from the canister, peppering the bed of the truck with thousands of shiny stalks.

"Delphi's gonna see that," yelled Naruto over the thrumming Falcon engine above them.

"I-I know! Hopefully, we'll be able to outrun them before the Royal Guard shows up." Hinata jerked the wheel to serve as another 'thwomp' sounded out behind them. Needles rained down and were lost in the wheat. They broke through the field and onto a dirt path. The tires spun for a moment, before jerking into a fishtail. Naruto slammed against the glass, then rammed back into his seat, smacking something behind him painfully. Rubbing his head, he glanced up. A gun rack. Two shotguns. Without thinking, he grabbed one, rolled down the window, and aimed at the Falcon.

He screamed once, a long, drawn out 'Yaaaahhh', and squeezed off a shot, the cockpit windshield crackling with the spread-shot. The Falcon veered, and came at them from Hinata's side.

"Naruto! What are you doing!" the girl screamed, turning the wheel again.

"I dunno!" he yelled right back. But he sure as anything wasn't going to do nothing. "If I'm gonna die, I might as well do something, right?"

He didn't hear the canister fire until it was too late. Hinata ducked as her window shattered, several needles zipping over her head. Naruto wasn't quite so lucky. "Augh!" Three needles stabbed into his arm, two into his side, and five into his leg. Dropping the gun, he yelled fitfully, not quite sure which part of his body to help first. He could feel himself black out as the points moved against organs and bone, scratching and tearing.

The last thing he saw was a terrified Hinata, throwing him a look of horror as he slow bled into darkness.

---

"Falcon eight four six nine, stand down. You are unauthorized to fly. I repeat, Falcon…"

The cries went unheeded and bled into a thousand other voices as Konoha's Central Command went haywire. Here in between the drab walls of one of the city's highest skyscrapers, several floors were dedicated to the enforcement and dedication to peace and pure politics. And now, it was nothing more than thousands of people running around as if they were chickens with their heads cut off. What was going on? How could this happen in their virtually crime free world? Where did that Falcon come from? Why was a chasing a truck in the middle of nowhere? Glass reflected and diffused the light from the late afternoon sun, over all the little people doing their best to keep their world from coming apart at the seams.

Delphi herself was running to her maximum, doing what she could to help. And at that moment, that included watching the bizarre chase from remote cameras. The pickup swerved left and right immediately after the side attack, but then corrected itself and kept roaring on, the Falcon following in hot pursuit.

Tsunade stood in the middle of the melee, shouting a few orders, and having a few orders shouted at her. This was not going well. "Delphi! How long until our Falcons intercept?"

"Three minutes and forty-five seconds," Delphi's image of herself had frozen on the wall screen, as the city-mind was far too busy with other things to bother animating it. "Tsunade, the pickup's driver is jamming me somehow. I cannot access their data."

"This whole thing is insane," snapped Tsunade, running a hand furiously through her hair. Slamming a fist on a wall, it fractured slightly as the she paced back and forth amidst the chaos. "Why aren't they using guns? The pickup doesn't seem to have a problem using them. Why needles?"

"I cannot guess," came Delphi's voice, whispering to her ear directly instead of over the speakers. Those were busy enough. "Perhaps they wish to detain those in the car?"

"Why?" The thought was new to the blonde. "And why take such a risk as use a Falcon?" The helicopter like vehicle was silent on the screen, but she could imagine the roaring of the engine and blades just by watching. The pickup swerved again, and this time, a blonde head burst from the passenger seat window, climbed onto the roof, and aimed a shotgun at the Falcon.

"Wow, I'd say that's one gutsy idiot."

The voice startled her, and she spun to greet the man behind her. "Kakashi!"

"Yo!" The masked man smiled softly, his lazy eye sweeping over the mayhem. "Looks like you'll be needing our help."

---

_Plip. Plip. Plip._

_The sound echoed eerily in the dim, yellow light, almost unreal, yet there. Hollow and devoid of essence. But there. Naruto stirred in the dank, stale water, standing slowly, before rapidly feeling at his limbs and sides. No marks. No needles. "Huh." His voice, like the drops, echoed about his head._

"_Come to visit, child?"_

_This voice did not echo, but simply fell like a lead weight into the frigid, heartless air. "Oh, I suppose not then."_

_Turning slowly around, Naruto saw nothing. Just corridors. Pipes. Grates puffing steam. And yellow water. "Where am I?" He moved forward, and turned a corner. Nothing. Just more sewer. The whole place had the feeling of a washed out newspaper, not old, just worn. Tired and trying to find peace where none was. It was unsettling. Perhaps he was under the city? He'd never been down there, but he'd read it was like a massive crypt, with defiled water running down into the depths of the earth for an eternity. Turning another corner, he paused._

_Bars. Massive, widely spaced bars stretched across the room, blocking him from going further. A single, blank piece of paper hung from the middle bar, plain and old looking._

"_So, this is where you've locked yourself up, eh?" Naruto couldn't help but smirk. After all, a demon had effectively trapped itself in his mind._

_Like pale golden moons, two eyes blinked at him from behind the cage, followed by the characteristic Cheshire cat grin. "Welcome, child, to my humble abode. And indeed, it is humble, for your mind does not seem to offer much else in accommodations. Perhaps you should read more books?"_

_Naruto muttered something under his breath, before shaking his head. "No, wait, I don't have time to trade insults."_

"_Mmm, I noticed. Quite a dangerous little game you're playing. Kind of like cat and mouse." The smile widened. "And you're the mouse." The eyes turned into slits. "Allow me to make an educated guess. You need help?"_

"_Great, you all ready know what I want." Naruto held out a hand, as if a child asking for money from his mother. "So gimme, furball."_

_Kyubbi chuckled, amused by the insolence, but grinned, before a loud roaring ripped from his throat. Chakra, red and hot, burned out of the cave, splashing around the bars._

_Straight into the waiting Naruto._

---

Naruto jerked awake so hard, it startled Hinata. She stared as the boy as he sat up trembling, his eyes wide with...what? Pain? Elation? Without warning, he tore the needles out and bowed, hands on his knees, head hanging. Steam seemed to rise from his arms, legs and sides as the wounds below stitched themselves and healed. A feral snarl tore from his throat as his fingers elongated, his nails turning into claws. Red chakra began to form from his stomach, then spread out, consuming him as he snapped his head up and stared at her.

Jerking the car in surprise, Hinata almost couldn't stare back at the blood crimson eyes. Dark and deep, heavy with age and youth all at once. His pupils dilated as he smirked, revealing elongated canines. The marks on his cheeks stood out starkly against the tan skin. "Just keep driving straight, 'kay?" His voice was guttural, like a feral animal. "Don't shake me off." Jerking the second shotgun off the wall, he checked the chambers, snapped it shut, then clambered up onto the roof. The fields and fence flashed by in rapid succession, blindingly blurry. Warm sunlight caught his face as he smirked straight at the tailing vehicle. If the Falcon pilot was surprised, he didn't show it, but the shooter was definitely weirded out as the boy stood on top the car, leaning slightly against the wind, and cocked a gun at the cockpit. "Kiss kiss, bang bang."

The shotgun bucked in his hand, spraying its shot out, finally destroying the Falcon's windshield before the pilot decided it was time to move. Skirting around to the back of the truck, another needle canister was aimed. Cursing blithely under his breath, he aimed again, but missed as the truck swerved around a pothole. And now, of course, the shotgun was empty.

Thwomp! The needles fired again, Naruto barely managing to roll into the pickup's bed, thinking frantically. "Drastic times call for drastic-Augh!" A stray needle found his thigh, but he pulled it out. "All right, now I'm mad." Without thinking, he took a running leap at the low flying Falcon, the unnatural chakra flowing through his body enhancing the impossible jump. He soared for a brief moment, arms outstretched like wings. He had no idea what he was doing. No really thought either. Time seemed to slow to a trickle, and he could count the individual rotations of the Falcon's blades. He could see the panicked look behind the pilot's facemask as the boy flew slowly towards his body, hands struggling with the controls. But surprised had killed him. The blade Hinata had given to him was pulled swiftly from his waistband, where he'd put it earlier. 'Deo Vinde' flashed on the blade moments before Naruto flew through the shattered windshield, straight onto the pilot. Time resumed, then sped up.

The chair that the pilot had been sitting in creaked as Naruto landed in a crouch in the pilot's lap, before he drew the blade backhanded over the man's neck, severing the jugular and flipping over the masked head, away from the inevitable spew of arterial blood. The gunner in the back screamed once, pulled the needle canister to his shoulder and fired while Naruto was still in the air. The blonde grabbed the pilot, still squirming in his death throes, and swung him in front like a shield, thousands of needles puncturing the flesh and around, destroying the cockpit controls and whatever remained of the windshield. Tossing the body aside, Naruto could feel the Falcon dip towards the ground. This was not going to be pleasant. Moving faster than humanly possible, he slammed his shoulder into the gunner, and stabbed through the sternum bone as if it were made of butter. The man gasped, clawing at the blade imbedded in his bone, horrified. "H-how...did--"

Drawing his palm back, Naruto slammed the hilt of the blade, driving the tip through the man's heart. "You made it easy," came the feral voice, chuckling sadistically; he yanked the blade out, trailing with sticky, coppery blood. Then, the Falcon struck the ground.

---

Hinata watched in terror as the Falcon behind her slammed into the ground, ground for several meters, and came to a stop. With a dull 'whump', the gasoline in the tank ignited from friction, and erupted. "No! Naruto!" She couldn't help but scream the name as a single, blonde body shot from the inferno, propelled by the eruption. He bounced once on the dirt road, rolled, and came to a stop against a fence post with a sickening crunch, several ribs snapping like twigs. Stopping the car, she ran out towards the smoking, bleeding, broken mess. Stopping short of the body, she covered her mouth and stifled a sob, before kneeling and rolling his corpse away from the post. "N-Narut-to..."

He looked dead. Absolutely and totally. The chakra had dissipated, and the cheek marks had become once again, simply lines. Limbs were twisted in odd angles, the grass slowly being painted red from a gash on his back. His skin was peppered with shrapnel, cut to ribbons. His mouth was slack, and his eyes were glazed over, unseeing, staring at the sky. Staring beyond it. Hinata touched his head softly, then passed a hand down his bloody cheek softly. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to do now. Cry? Mourning the loss of someone she barely knew seemed strange. And yet, he had saved her life by sacrificing his. In the distance, she could hear the dull thunder of the Royal Guard's Falcons. She had to get his body out of here. She couldn't just leave him. Hoisting him up, she set her transmission beacon so the others could find her, and pulled him into the truck. She'd have to ditch the car, but for now, she just had to get away.

A flurry of dust, and she was gone.

---

"They got away, Leader." The voice, was dispassionate. "In retrospect, I should have gone after him myself, instead of exposing ourselves."

The Leader growled. "The heir is gone, Itachi! This is beyond failure. This is an utter catastrophe. The Key is vastly important, and your men killed him." In the stillness of the cave, his voice rang out, echoing, and doubling back. Then, they stilled. "We cannot find them for now. They are well hidden. For now, we continue with our plan."

"I have a suggestion, Leader." Itachi stared up at the white eyes boring into him. "Send Gaara to look for them. This will be a sign of his loyalty. This is a perfect test to see exactly what your laborious works have forged."

A pause. Quiet. "Yes, yes, this idea has merit. Tell Gaara of the arrangements. I will send plans down soon." The Leader smiled softly, almost kindly. "And Itachi, see that neither you, nor Gaara fail. I'd hate to lose such valuable players."

---

Orochimaru sighed, his face grim as he watched the feed through a remote link direct from the city-mind's connections. That had cost him a pretty penny, but then again, he could afford it. Frowning, he watched as the downed Falcon was cleaned up by diligent people in white hazard suits. Sprays of CO2 flew from their canisters, extinguishing the fire in white foam. Steepleing his fingers before his face, he watched the screen over his fingertips. This was not good. This was Akatsuki. That sort of reckless behavior could only be attributed to them.

Grunting, he lifted a phone. It was time to enter this little game.

---ooo---

This is a refrence to an Arkansas Toothpick. Lookit up. It's a wicked cool knife. Deo Vinde is also a refrence, but to the Civil War, when the Toothpick was first used. It means, "God will Vindicate" in Latin.

This chappie is noticably shorter than my last one, but, yeah, my muse fled. Sorry it took so long to get up as well, but then again, I'm not in the minority here. XP

**Kiss Kiss Bang Bang** By Keoki I feel like a cheated on this one, since I've never really listened to this song. Not beyond the 30 second thing on Itunes, anyway. But it was so perfect, I had to put it in. And no, I never saw the movie.

Next chappie started. Gaara gets to show. For now, I leave you with a quasi-cliffie. Get over it.

-Raz


	6. Summertime

---ooo---

**Summertime**

_I'm afraid you can't die yet, child. I have much invested in you._

_Y'know what? Maybe I should die, just to spite you. If I die, I take you down with me, right? Yeah, sounds fitting. Naruto, the man you brought down a legendary Bijuu! Rather like the sound of that._

_Ngh, I'm sure you do, but for now, this is not your choice. Your soul barely hangs on the edge of this life, and if I had not grasped you, you would have surely been flung into the Great Beyond._

_What if I like 'Great Beyond's? Is it really your place to keep me from it?_

_Yes..._

_If I __**ever**__ get my hands on you…_

_Mm, I'm sure. But for now, wake up!_

---

Air flowed into his lungs, and he gasped at it greedily, startling Hinata for the second time that day. His eyes sprang open, then promptly snapped back down, pain flooding his listless corpse. Soft snapping sounds echoed as his bones realigned and became whole again, creaking and snapping in the cool, dry air.

Her scream started more like a whimper, before escalating into a full blown, high piercing screech of panic as she backed out of his line of vision and into something solid behind her. Groggily, Naruto wiped some dry blood out of his face and spit congealed blood from his mouth. Sitting up slowly, it took him a full second to realize he was, in fact, not dead. "Nghuh?" And another second to become aware of the banshee shrieks. His senses flooded back, and he hissed violently. "What? Shut up for a second!"

The girl took another breath to start screaming again, but Naruto was all ready moving, clamping a hand over her mouth, growling into her startled face. His hair fell about his face, clinging by strands of dried blood, dead embers from his charred clothes falling all about from his sudden rush of speed. "Shut up!" he said again, reeling about dizzily. "I'm...where...who're yo...Hinata?" He stood over her seated figure, his hand pressing against her mouth, forcing her head back into what must've once been a shoji door. Naruto's eyes flicked about the room in all its decayed glory.

Beyond the shoji door, between the panes where rice paper had once been, there was a simple darkened hallway leading perpendicular from the room. The room itself had one bare light bulb lit by a solitary power cell. Light from the bulb wavered and flickered, making a sort of 'tink-tink' sound, illuminating an old futon covered in dried blood. His blood, presumably. Wooden walls bereft of any decoration, or a good cleaning for that matter, stood bare and stark, supporting a sagging, water-damaged ceiling. An ugly brown-yellow stain seemed to have spread all over the wall and floor. More water damage.

"Wh-where are we?" he snapped, as if not realizing his tone of voice. All he got as a response were two wide pale eyes staring at him, and a strangled whimpering sound. Taking deep breath, he tried to force himself to focus. Slowly, Naruto pulled his hand back, spots of Hinata's saliva making the dried blood sticky again. Rubbing himself clean absently, he looked about again, before looking towards the girl. "You all right?"

Without warning, he found himself embracing the Hyuga heir awkwardly as she threw herself at him, beating him with her fists lightly. "You _idiot_!" she yelped, half angry, half terrified. "You were _dead_! I saw you die. Why are you alive?" Her glancing blows caught him on his chin, his all ready troubled stomach, and his throat. Struggling with the squirming girl, he defended himself as well as he could with one hand. Before more damage could be done, he wrapped his arms more securely around her, crushed her to his chest, and hoisted her off her feet.

"Calm down!"

Surprisingly, it worked, but not because of his command. Again, those pale eyes filled his vision, eyebrows creased in surprise, noses nearly touching, and a brilliant vermilion shade coloring her cheeks. She squeaked, then nodded, struggling out of his grasp. Releasing her with little thought to her comfort, he stepped back, then towards the shoji screen, scowling furiously. "Didn't die," he mumbled, sliding it open and glancing down the dark, dank hallway. Somewhere far away in the gloom, a red light blinked, but nothing else. There wasn't even sound of scampering rats. "You just imagined it, probably." Turning around, he scowled, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "All right, Miss Hyuga, where are we?"

She blinked slowly from her seat on the floor, where she'd dropped from his arms. Standing slowly, she regained that composure for which her clan was famous for. "H-Hinata. You don't have to call me Miss or anything." She rubbed her arm absently, biting her lip. "We're in some ruins in the woods. I...I don't think anyone knows about it." Finally meeting his eyes, her mouth became a thin, hard line. "And you did die. I felt your pulse. Checked your breathing. Even looked over your chakra points and analyzed your heart. It was ruptured." Crossing her arms, she couldn't quite manage an angry look, but something akin to grudging awe came over her. "You were really, really dead, Naruto." He avoided her gaze, staring up at the spot on the ceiling.

"You're...not going to tell me what's going on, are you?" she said, her timid nature once again setting in as she sat down in front of him. Her little outburst had surprised even her, of course, but it was not something she was apologetic for. Sighing, she pulled out his blade, still caked with blood. Watching him through hooded eyes, she started to wipe off the blood on her shirt.

Naruto didn't move for a moment, before slumping against the wall, groaning. "This sucks. This sucks bad." His eyes went up to hers, apologetic. "Listen, sorry about earlier. The, uh, hand over your mouth and yelling and stuff. I'm just really, _really _confused right about now." Brushing back his hair, he grunted, trying to keep it out of his eyes. It simply slid back. "Dragged a House heir into this, this...whatever it is."

Hinata held up the blade, watching him again, before flicking the weapon down next to him, the hilt quivering slightly. He yanked it out with a nod of thanks, pushing it into his waistband again. "Actually," she began, wincing slightly as if expecting an angry explosion, "I-I think this is actually our faults. You know, us. The Hidden Shinobi. We aren't exactly fighting just the Regent." Her eyes met his for a moment, then swung back down to her hands, which were currently busy knotting themselves into her shirt fabric. "We...probably drew attention to you some way or another." When he didn't speak, Hinata continued. "There are two other factions. There's the Akatsuki, and there's the Sound. Both are important in different ways, and totally different in goal."

Slowly, she began to draw in the dust as she explained. "The Sound is far more elusive than the Akatsuki, and we don't know what motivates them or why. But they're ruthless killers, and loyal to their boss to the end. However, they're far more quiet in their dealings, making them hard to pinpoint. They oppose the Akatsuki and our own group, but haven't quite managed to wipe out either of us." She drew a question mark in the dust absently.

"But the Akatsuki, we know exactly who they are, and what they want." Drawing a circle, she touched the circumference in nine different areas. "It's an organization with about nine heads, and several dozen underlings. The Nine are the actual heavyweights, with the rest being grunts with no redeeming qualities. Their goal is simply to get out of the city." She drew a longer, oblong circle around the circle, representing the city wall. "But unlike the Hidden Shinobi, they think that they only way out is with brute force, namely the Bijuu." Slowly, she drew a large, hunched looking cartoon monster, complete with googly eyes. Abashed, she smiled sheepishly. "I'm...I don't know what the Bijuu look like, but their supposed to be monsters made of pure, inhuman chakra. They want to control the Bijuu to slam through the gates and then take control of the population within the dome and whatever may be outside." She shrugged, setting her palm on the accumulated doodling and smearing the dust. Brushing herself off, she smiled softly at him. "And that's about it." Slowly, the smile bled away. "Hey, are you all right?"

Naruto stared straight ahead, eyes fixed on some distant point. "Bijuu?" his voice almost crumbled, eyes wide. Unbidden, a memory came to mind. A memory of fire and heat and burning flesh. Of molten metal eyes, hungry teeth, and death. "As in, like, the Kyubbi no Kitsune?"

Her face scrunched, as if trying to recall. "Umm, yeah, that's the nine-tailed fox, right? There's a fairytale about him, I think. I'm afraid I don't remember it off the top of my head." She gave him another look, before standing. "Well, we have to make our way out of here, and try to get to base." Sighing, she rubbed her face with her hands, leaving streaks of dust all over unconsciously. "Oooh, I wish Neji had taken care of this. He's so much better at it than me."

Shuddering softly, Naruto stood as well. The attacks made sense now. They wanted him. Or rather, what's inside of him. Setting a hand on his stomach, he could feel the heat from the mark, and he frowned. Slowly, he looked up, patted her shoulder, and moved towards the door. "Neji? Kinda doubt it. You're doing fine." He felt her twitch at his touch, then relax, a soft 'oh' then 'thank you' slipping from her lips. Weird girl. "Now, show me the way out."

---

There was wind and a thunderstorm scheduled today, but there was no real way to avoid it. Treetops whipped this way and that as the invisible zephyrs buffeted them without relenting. The light from the top of the dome was temporarily dimmed as artificial clouds darkened, running towards the farmlands to the west far too slowly, dribbling their water and lightening along the way. Gaara hated rain. He hated lightening even more. Why did they even _need_ lightening? But that hardly mattered. This was a mission. A simple one at that. No muss, no fuss. Just two idiots who actually thought they could run from the Akatsuki.

Lifting his hand, he stared at it, flexing and relaxing it. If one was not aware of the seal, they wouldn't notice the sands reshifting over his skin with every movement. The nature of the ultimate defense. And the cost? He hadn't been able to feel anything since the sealing. And sleep was a trait wholly unfriendly, now. Cursing softly, he clenched his fist, the sand making an odd noise at the sudden move, but there was no delay.

The forest around him howled, the shrieking matching with the constant maddened banshee screaming deep within his mind. Shukaku's maddened efforts to free himself were all for naught. As long as Gaara stayed awake, there was nothing to fear. Looking down, he studied the gate of the mansion, a crumbling ruins sitting out in the middle of the forest for no immediately apparent reason. Without noise, Gaara flicked a wrist, the sand in the soil reacting. "Hmm." Stepping through the doors, he shut them without conscious thought, the sand outside piling up to block the door with a dull thud. Now, it was time for a rousing game of hide and seek.

---

"What was that?" Naruto paused, ears twitching at a distant sound. It sounded much like a distant giant's fist knocking on a door. Hinata stopped as well, activating her Byakugan. For a moment, the hallway was as silent as it was dark. Shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot, Naruto sighed. He seemed aware of every unsavory thing in this place. The smell of rotting wood stung his nose, the feel of grimy walls, and the sound of termites chewing at the walls around them. They all gave him a faint, unsettling feeling that something was going to happen. "Hinata...?"

She gasped, eyes returning to normal, before flicking this way and that. "They found us. The Akatsuki found us. The doors blocked with something. Sand, I think." She frowned. "That was fast." She looked up at him, squirming, obviously not comfortable. "What are we gonna do? I'm not too great at hand to hand." Gripping her head, she clenched her eyes shut and frowned. "Oooh, I wish Neji was here" she moaned again, "He'd know what to do."

"Hey, whoa, don't fall apart on me now," Naruto hissed, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her lightly. "We need to keep our focus, all right? Neji's not here, and we have to make do with what we've got, all right? Besides, you did just fine earlier." Turning her around and giving her a slight push in the direction they'd been heading in, he again brushed the hair from his head impatiently. "Now c'mon. There's gotta be another way out."

She stared at him for a moment, then blushed discreetly. "Uh, well, there is, but it's in the other direction." Turning on her heel, she tugged him down the hall, peering through doors, nibbling on her lip. Vaguely, a hissing sound encroached into her occupied mind, causing her to glance down. She gasped.

The floor moved with squirming, wiggling sands.

---

"So, the Royal Guard's offering its help, hmm?" Tsunade smirked lopsidedly, watching her masked comrade with a vague, yet false, disinterest. After all, he was the one whom had taken Jiraiya's place in the ranks of the most elite fighters of the Konoha City-State. Stirring at her coffee idly, she glanced about at the café. It wasn't exactly rush hour, but there were a decent amount of people milling about, moving from street to street, yakking into their com-phones, buying hot dogs and pretzels, or simply sitting on the steps of the city hall.

Kakashi sat beside her under the umbrella, facing the street with her, smiling lightly. "Well, I wouldn't say the 'Royal Guard' exactly. It's mainly just me and a few of the guys down at base who've been irresistibly drawn to this thing." His eyes watched not the people of the streets, but the pages of a book that seemed to ooze sensuality. From time to time, he would flip the page with a soft sound, but his attention never drifted from her. "We all like a good mystery, you see."

Sucking at a whipped-cream covered spoon, Tsunade 'hmmed' softly. "A boy, the heir of the Uzumaki House, gone, mysteriously missing for nearly two days reappears being chased by an unauthorized, unmarked Falcon." Nodding politely to the waitress that took her empty cup, she waited until the girl was out of earshot. "Nothing too fantastic, is it?"

"You have absolutely no talent for sarcasm, Tsunade. I hope you realize this," remarked the masked man dryly. "But aside from that abysmal fault, I'd like to work with you again. It's been so boring down at ol' HQ, if you know what I mean."

Flicking a biscotti crumb off her shirt, Tsunade snorted. "I wish I had your problem." Pulling out a manila envelope idly, she pushed it towards him. "Delphi's compilation of all the relevant documents, stills, and vids of this little case." Standing to leave, she set a bill on the table before patting Kakashi on the shoulder. "Good luck, Scarecrow. You're gonna need it, eh? Nice to see you taking an interest."

The sound of her stiletto heels clicked off in the distance, leaving the Royal Guard Commander to his book. Flipping another page idly, he chuckled. "Nice to _feel_ interest."

---

It was not going well. The steady hiss never decreased as they burst through atriums, rooms, and door with wild abandon, and never slowed. It made them slow, made them tired, and made them irritated. It seemed to pulse as well, and growl. Naruto led them now, Hinata pointing at doors and hallways. But it seemed like a labyrinth. And each motion of her finger seemed riddled with self-doubt and second guessing. There wasn't even a comp-screen to ask for help or directions. Whenever this House was built, it was long ago. And it was a House. Long forgotten seals adorned the occasional floor mosaic or moldering library tapestry, a massive, tomoe'd eye staring out from a blood red pupil. "This is...the old Uchiha House?"

Hinata nodded curtly. "Yeah," she breathed. "It was built before the split between the Uchiha and the Hyuga." She was tiring, but, gamely, she ran on. "We have to get to the arboretum and out through there. It's the closest room I could think of with a sure way to get out." She pushed open a door. "Glass walls. Easy to break." She paused against the doorjamb, breathing heavily from the sprint. "C-can we rest for a minute?"

"You don't have a minute. Or seconds for that matter."

The cold voice came from beyond the open door, dead and flat. It was a pitiless, what-do-I-care sound that sounded far too dispassionate to be human. Naruto turned swiftly, bringing his body around Hinata's.

The arboretum was large, at least an acre, and surrounded by glass walls. Many panes were missing, allowing the forest outside merge with the one inside. At one point, this had been a beautiful garden. Now, it was nothing more than a tangle of green vegetation and century old trees. The red head stood among the trees, the area around him flattened by flinging sand particles, the dust occasionally striking bark and tearing off pieces with incredible speeds. "Had a good run? They say it's good for the health."

Naruto frowned, hand laying on the hilt of his blade.

Grimly, a twisted smile crawled over the other boy's face, a sharp crackling of stone accompanied by the showing of teeth. "Etiquette is very important. Especially to me." Touching his forehead with two fingers, he dragged them over the tattoo. "It is one of my rules of etiquette to give a name to the one I kill." A bird twittered somewhere in the back of the garden as the first drops of rain began to spatter down. The scheduled storm had begun. "I am Gaara of the Sandstorm."

Jabbing a thumb at himself, Naruto growled. "Well, I'm ticked off. Bad. I didn't ask for your name, Akatsuki." The blade flashed out. "But well met, _brother_." Spreading his legs, he fell into a sloppy fighter's stance.

He didn't get any farther than that, however. Hinata grabbed his collar as he was about to leap, and yanked him back harshly. "_What_ are you _doing_? You don't know how to fight!" She stepped forward, shoving him lightly out of the way. Her hands fell into a soft sign, and the Hyuga power activated, the veins around her eyes standing out.

Gaara wasted no more words, and instantly whipped out a tendril of sand, slamming Hinata against the temple and flicking her out of the way. She stumbled back and smashed her head into a tree. Slumping, she groaned softly, bleary eyes blinking fitfully. "I haven't the time for this. I've lost interest long ago." Thunder rumbled overhead, and the rain fell harder. Slowly, Gaara drew back the sand, and slowly, it became a point. "I am to bring you back alive, but they never specified _how_ alive." The point flew towards the unfortunate blond.

Stumbling out of the way, Naruto was only nicked. Blood fell in a soft red haze as his side was cut open, but suddenly, that wasn't so important anymore. His abdomen was burning, or at least felt like it. He gasped, grasping his stomach, and doubling over. Glancing at Gaara, he watched as the other grabbed at his head, which suddenly bled red sand. Naruto understood vaguely only a moment later.

"This...this isn't really _our_ fight, is it, Gaara of the Sandstorm." It was not a question. Like a worm crawling from a hole, red fire leaked from between his fingers, spreading over his body, consuming it in raw scarlet color.

Gaara was slowly enveloped by living sand, his eyes pitiless unchanging. "As a rule of etiquette, I ask your forgiveness. This is not our quarrel at all." The grin awoke again, then split wider and traveled up and up his face. Sand continued to devour him whole. "This is a Bijuu matter." Rain fell harder, sweeping in and out of the trees, a powerful summertime storm.

As suddenly as the consumption started, it stopped, leaving no boys.

Just monsters.

---

Behold, the next chappie. Believe it or not, this is a crappy chapter, and a cop out. And I'm posting it on a Wednesday, when nobody's bound to see it. XP

But yeah, this was originally a grander chapter, but I couldn't make it work, and I got stuck. Hence the lateness. But it does further the story. I think.

Today's song? **Summertime** by **George Gershwin**

That would be another cop out. Working on the next chappie now.

-Raz


	7. Hurt

---ooo---

**Hurt**

This was not a happy day. Not at all. First, it rained on him as he headed to headquarters. Then, there's lightning. Now, the Eye goes and makes the meeting mandatory. Sasuke and the rest sat around the holo-screen, watching as a dim shape came into being. And dim it was. More of a silhouette, really. Their leader was as enigmatic as he was brilliant. Outlined, he had fashionably spiked hair, and thick, lumpy clothing that hid the body. His scrambled voice warbled unpleasantly from the built in speakers.

"Good afternoon, Shinobi." The Eye's only defining characteristic was his...well, eye. A single eye, white sclera, black pupil. The cheery voice, encrypted as it was, came through loud and clear. "Enjoying the weather, I hope? Rain's good now and again, eh?"

Sasuke scrunched down in his chair besides Neji, glaring slightly at the outline. "Did you have something to tell us? Chatting about the weather is not something I'm in to."

Throwing him a glare, Sakura pursed her lips. Turning to the leader, she smiled lightly. "He's just mad he got wet. What's the emergency?"

Humming softly, the scrambled voice let loose a sad little chuckle. "We...have an incident. Something that involves the group. If you'll notice, Hinata is not among us. And believe me, she received the com. She just didn't pick up, so I tracked her com-phone." The Eye held up a finger and wagged it. "I patched into Delphi's subsystems and did a quick, rather discreet dome sweep. Check it out."

The Eye disappeared, replaced by an aerial still image from the dome ceiling. It magnified twice to reveal the rooftops of an overgrown mansion. To the back, an enclosed garden's glass walls had been blown out by a massive influx of sand, the remains covered by torrents of sandstreams. In the middle of the arboretum, one pinprick of red light shone. It magnified again to show a boy's yellow head of hair, thick, bubbling red chakra flowing like molasses over his body. A few feet away from him, a red head was slowly being swallowed by sand. Off to the side, Hinata was slumped against a tree, eyes hidden by a curtain of dark hair.

For a moment, no one stirred. Finally, Akamaru barked once, then whined, nudging Kiba. Absently, the dog trainer set a hand on his friend's collar and scratched behind it. "What's..what is this? Isn't that red crap chakra? Wouldn't Delphi pick up on that?"

"Hn," grunted Shikamaru, leaning in a bit closer to the holo. "If chakra is visible, it's hyper-concentrated. Energy readings should be off the chart."

"So much for an omniscient City-mind," snorted Neji. Rubbing his bandaged forehead, he grunted. "Hinata's wrapped up in this. We can't leave her there. And that idiot's gonna get her killed, I just know it. I'm not about to be executed for failing to save her."

"Oh, don't pretend you don't care, Neji." Ino poked him lightly, garnering a nasty look. "This is pretty simple. We go, we save, we get back."

"No."

"No?" Sakura's forehead scrunched up. "Wha-Why? We can do it."

"You ability to do this job is...debatable." The Eye waved at her dismissively. "But that's not the point. It's about exposure. If Delphi's running blind, it's Akatsuki's work. Orochimaru hasn't moved yet, apparently. This would be a big enough fight that it'd take all of you. Right now, I believe Naruto can finish this by himself." He paused, the line going to static for a moment before he continued. "Well, actually, I'm not too sure that's Naruto anymore."

Tenten leaned back in her chair, twirling a blade idly on a finger. "So, what? you went through all this trouble to annoy the crap out of us by telling us not to help?"

"No." The eye closed for a moment, then opened. "I want you to watch. This is a Bijuu fight."

There was a collective murmur among the Shinobi. The Bijuu have awakened? When did this happen? Those are Bijuu vassals?

"Quiet," The Eye continued, waving at them, "Never mind the how's just now. We need to find a weakness. Naruto's included." He took a deep breath, then released it. "Because without proper restraint, Naruto himself is a threat. No one forget it." Another pause. Then, the image flickered to a live action shot of the mansion below. "Oh, and enjoy the fireworks. There are always bound to be fireworks."

---

A crack of lightning rippled through the manmade skies above, striking the ground, tearing up the world below. When the WeatherApp. was created, the innovators left nothing out, for when you leave nothing out, you have everything. There are less chances of being wrong about the complicated makings of nature's torrents and calm signs if you have all elements included. Long ago in the history of mankind, it was discovered that lightning is actually a discharge, a necessary release of built up meteorological energy. And so, the bolts of Zeus do not spare even a domed City-State.

Crackling thunder thrust Hinata back into awareness, where a pounding headache was instantly forgotten at the sight of two demons. She stifled a scream as what was once Naruto glanced at her and grinned lopsidedly, his eyes slanted, pupils elongated. But his attention turned back to his kin.

"_Shukaku, Brother, it has been quite a few eons without having seen your face." _Kitsune's molten eyes stare at his sand brother, long tongue lolling softly from between sharpened teeth. _"You are well?"_

Shukaku growled, his face still half human. But his eyes blinked once or twice, and a false, sandy smile cracked the face, little rivulets of grains trickling between teeth. _"Ah, Brother, you speak condescendingly once more. Oh how long I have loathed your voice. But it does my heart good to see you stoop so low as to seal yourself within a mortal."_

"_Oh, but it does my heart better to see you sealed within a mortal __**un**__willingly._" Kitsune laughed, utterly overjoyed at his own clever wit. Naruto's face contorted into an unnatural foxy grin, the smile stretched far too long.

"_Quiet, Traitor. You who have done the unthinkable dishonors himself further by making light of a Loyalist."_ The raccoon smile fell, leaving only a long, harsh snarl. _"It is your fault we are sealed here. And it is your fault we are sealed Here. I know you understand the meaning between the two…__**Brother**__."_ The sandy, serrated tail whipped out like a snake, flashing out in cadence with the flashes of steely-blue lightning.

The Nine-Tails ducked, snagged the tail, and yanked. All ready, Shukaku's form had enveloped Gaara, and his form weighed as much as a small pickup. But Naruto's thin frame threw him as easily as a pinecone. The sand monster slammed into the far mansion wall, straight through, and out into a room beyond. Landing harshly on frayed tatami mats, he snarled as the blonde boy stepped calmly through the hole, and kept his Cheshire cat grin. _"Ah, you can hardly blame me for what I did, Shukaku. And I would not venture to call what I did traitorous when, in fact, the Mother betrayed __**me**__ first!"_ Lightning flashed again and again, turning the darkness to light like a strobe beam.

For the half second the room was illuminated, Kitsune's eyes beheld the trap too late. The sand poured down from the walls where it had been hidden, flooding and crushing. Naruto's skeleton would not handle it, even possessed as it was.

"_Sand Burial!"_

Without remorse, Shukaku's claw clasped shut, the room compacting instantly into a globular shape. For good measure, he ground his fingers, eeking out a dark liquid from the sand. _"Oh, how the mighty have fallen..."_ Releasing, he chuckled and moved to pick up the body in the sand.

However, it wasn't Naruto's body. Several pigeons lay quite still, their bodies drained of blood, their corpses imploded and full of sand. _"Multiple substitutions…"_ Furiously, he knocked them aside, and moved the sand, glancing about. A neat hole in the ceiling dribbled debris directly over the dead birds. Jumping recklessly, his ungainly body made a graceful landing in the room above. _"Clever, very clever. You always had a silver tongue and a quick mind. But your narcissism will be the death of you yet. Pride cometh before the fall."_ Tanuki eyes skimmed the pitch black room, and snout sampled the air. With a grunt, he turned and strained to block the fist that found him. Gritting his teeth, he shoved back, and countered a kick. _"The Mother weeps, or can you no longer hear her voice?"_

"_Her voice has long, long ago abandoned this humble Son of Hers,"_ hummed a voice. Without warning, a pinprick of red light exploded into Shukaku's face, smashing a massive chunk of sand off. His feet left the ground and he slammed through a wall and back into the arboretum, flailing for purchase in mid air. Turning, he landed, sliding, knocking over several trees.

Lightly, Naruto's form jumped from the new window and into the tangle of vegetation. Everything dripped as he walked towards the wrecked trees, the leaves, the vines, the very glass sky itself. Raindrops sizzled as he walked towards the furrow Shukaku had left when he fell, pausing idly as he glanced left and right. The sand raccoon was gone. _"Hm."_

A layer of sand exploded from beneath him, knocking him back. Arms crossed before his face, Kitsune snarled as Shukaku's tendrils of sand drilled into Naruto's arms. The sudden pressure forced the forearm bones to bend grotesquely, then snap like kindling. He snarled in pain, before the tendril smashed into his side and up. With a sudden shattering, the glass ceiling exploded as his body traveled up and out onto a low roof. Cursing softly, he curled into a ball and rolled when he hit the roof tiles. With a snap, his arms reset themselves and he wiggled his fingers, just to be safe. They worked.

"_Even now you do not regret your deeds? Your blasphemy is appalling."_ Shukaku's form had grown bigger, adding sand from the soil and surrounding area. He was nearly two stories high now, and as long as a motor home. His head was level with Naruto's body, and the massive mouth gaped. _"It is little wonder that you now lose. She is with me yet."_ The snarl never left his voice. _"You are not surprised, right?"_

"_Am I ever?" _hummed the nine-tails, chewing on his lip with pointed fangs. He flipped out of the way as a massive paw took a chunk out of the mansion's side. Frowning, Naruto's body jerked as he dodged a large clump of debris. _"And She was never with me. She cannot be betrayed then. She cannot be __**hurt**__! Because She...does...not…__**EXIST**__!"_ Drawing back his arm, he let chakra bundle and grow, growing hotter and brighter as Shukaku grew bigger and bigger. Thunder rolled and rain fell as they both gathered themselves for one final attack.

Tensing his arm, Kitsune grinned his long grin, and...twitched. _"Hmm?"_ He tried to jerk Naruto's hand forward, but it simply wavered, as if held back. The chakra in his palm grew dim and blipped out of reality as Naruto fought for his mind.

---

_Stay out of this, brat! Are you insane? He'll kill us both! Even as it is, I cannot access my full power._

_Tough balls, Fuzzo. This is my battle as much as it's yours. That's my body you're trashing out there._

_**You **__would not be able to deal with this sort of power, fool. You are naught but an insect before one of us. Can you not comprehend this?_

_I comprehend plenty, and if I'm gonna die, I wanna know it's my fault and no one else's. Don't like it? Deal with it. Your seal's just a tad too strong. As long as I'm aware, I can control my body. _

_No! Wait, you __**imbecile**__! I propose a compromise!_

_Tch, fine. But I lead._

---

Naruto came awake with a start, eyes snapping wide open, just in time to see Shukaku end his growth.

Nearly a hundred meters tall, the Raccoon laughed hollowly in the deep, unaffected voice of a true monster. _"Hohohahahaha, a child now leads you, Kitsune? Ohhh, how you're empire of dirt has fallen. Hahaha." _

Clouds churned and flashed, growling their anger at the earth below. Naruto blinked, blinked again, wiping water from his eyes as he leapt sideways, his legs carrying much too far. His perspective was split. Rather, _their_ perspective was split. His mind, Naruto's mind, was fully aware of all that was happening, and had total control over his body, but his chakra was not his. Kitsune boiled up from him like a frothy cauldron, his mind offering advice and whispers of suggestions to Naruto. They were, for the moment, one. It was disorienting to have thoughts from another mind race through yours.

But then again, it was utterly natural. The blonde boy couldn't help but laugh throatily, enjoying the full, raw, unhindered power burning him alive. Pain like rolling waves left him breathless and gasping for more. Eyes set ablaze, he leapt about the roofs, climbing higher and higher, Kitsune's growling voice emanating with his. _"_Ah, Shukaku, that's yer name, right?" The two-toned voice crackled and popped from the back of his throat, and he loved it. "I'm not interested in talking to you. You're downright boring. Lemme see Gaara. Now **he's **interesting."

"_And why should I listen to you, boy? Didn't your mother tell you not to interrupt adults?"_ The tail came flashing down, smashing through the building like a hot knife through butter. _"My host is just that, a host. He has nothing useful to contribute to the fight."_

With a shuddering crack, the tail whipped into him, smashing him through spires and tiles, brushing his small body aside like chaff. Naruto gasped, his ribs popping and cracking beneath the tremendous strain. He flew from the tail like a rag-doll, landing against an ancient lightning rod. It pierced the flesh of his leg without difficulty, and snapped off cleanly, coming away stuck between the two bones of his calf. He...they yelped, skipped once on a roof, and smashed into a turret wall. "Ugh. I feel like a freakin' shiskabob." With one smooth motion, he tore the long metal shaft out, and slumped as the flesh healed painfully. "Ngh! Seriously, does it have to hurt this bad?" Standing slowly, he wiped blood from his forehead as Shukaku lumbered up onto the roofs, the entire building groaning beneath his massive weight. Ducking his massive head, he kept low as lightning flickered among the highest of the turrets.

"Hm. Heh. Now **there's** an idea." Stepping forward, he hefted the bloodied lightning rod and leapt to the highest point of the mansion. As he landed, a brilliant flash of electricity rattled down the turret and down to the grounded wiring. "This better not kill me." Flinging a piece of tile at the Raccoon Bijuu's head, he whistled shrilly. Slowly, the head turned to snarl at him, his tail whipping out again.

Without hesitating, Naruto slammed the lightning rod into the tail as he leapt onto it. Rolling off, he leapt for another rod, snapping it off at the base and coming up close to Shukaku's leg. Climbing inhumanly fast up the shifting sands, he slammed the second rod into the massive shoulder. The tail found him this time, cracking a leg and casting him off. Grunting, he whipped past another rod and grasped it. Ancient metal bent and broke from his momentum, letting him come away with a third lightning rod. Standing slowly, he snarled as his leg reset, then jumped. Landing on yet another turret, he stared down at the Sand Beast. "Fifty-four thousand degrees, five hundred MegaJoules, and three million volts of unaltered electrical current." A twitching, wicked smile crawled along his fanged maw, and he laughed. It was guttural, low, and grating, the sound of a human gone mad. Or a Bijuu having a laughing fit. "Can't say anything that isn't cliché right about now, so I'm not even going to mention fireworks." 

Shukaku finally noticed him, and lunged, clambering up the turret and opening an abysmal mouth to scream his fury and arrogance at this insignificant little human. "Smells like ozone," cackled the hybrid mind as he jumped and landed squarely on the Bijuu's head. Setting his hand on the whipping sands, he raised the lightning rod with the other hand and laughed. Shukaku shook his head violently, growling incoherent curses as Naruto set his mouth beside the large ear and laughed. "Lightning always strikes…" he chuckled merrily, the metal rod raised unwavering in the winds. The sky sparked. "...at the highest point."

With a roar, the mechanical Zeus of the dome let loose his bolts. The current channel ripped down the metal rod, through Naruto's convulsing body, and into Shukaku's head. Leaping instantaneously to the other two rods, sand and soil erupted, melting and rehardening into glass in a matter of nano-moments. Electricity raged and rattled, crackling and burning, turning the Bijuu into a grotesque glass sculpture. Large patches of glass cracked and shattered as lightning struck again and again, as Shukaku screamed his pain and fury. As Naruto roasted alive.

Forty to fifty microseconds later, all was still. And slowly, slowly, sand and glass began to cascade, raining over the world and spreading to the winds. Shukaku roared and screamed and cursed as his essence was once again sealed within his vessel.

---

Gaara collapsed onto his side, wincing as he rolled through the sand. The Sand Bijuu slowly retreated, howling, into his mind, off to lick his wounds. Standing slowly, he stumbled, and watched as sparks leapt from his fingers. Clenching his hands into fists, he exhaled raggedly then fell to his knees. "Th-that's it then." Grinding his forehead with the ball of his hand, he snarled. "I'm still...not enough. Still not...good. Gngh!" Gnashing his teeth, he stood slowly and turned towards the smoldering body several yards away, collapsed once again in the arboretum. They'd been flung a good hundred yards from the roof and into the demolished garden. The last of the red chakra seeped from Naruto's body, healing fitfully as it went. A massive gash in Naruto's side was left gaping, however, leaking rivulets of blood. His entire body twitched and shuddered, convulsing fitfully in the earth, trails of grey-blue smoke running off his body. Water hissed as rain fell on his prone body.

"F-fool, you've left yourself exposed." Gaara took out a red-hot blade, yielding it shakily. It sparked in his impervious hand. "Now, now I c-can dispose of you. I can preserve my blood ties. I can keep...my family."

A long blade and a strong arm suddenly gripped him from behind, the tip pressed against the sand-skin of Gaara's neck. Chakra ignited the blade, as Hinata hissed into his ear. "Don't...touch...him!"

Frowning, Gaara cursed fitfully. In his weakened state, he would be absolutely no match for the minimally injured ninja. An Heir at that. This was a compromising position. "Hn," he grunted in acknowledgement. "Forgot about you. But are you really willing to kill, Hyuuga Hinata? After all, you are an Heir in direct opposition to this child's House."

"What are you talking about?" The voice behind him hissed, trembling slightly. "I'm not interested in mind games, Akatsuki terrorist."

She had no idea who this was? "You don't know? This is Naruto Uzumaki, Heir of the Uzumaki House. I believe your Houses have long been on unfriendly terms." Gaara kept his voice level, disinterested. "I'm rather surprised you'd protect him. After all, he's the single greatest deterrent to your House. A thorn in your side, if you will."

The blade on his neck trembled slightly, wavered, then strengthened. "No, I didn't know that. I don't care either, even if you _are_ telling the truth." Hinata glanced over Gaara's shoulder. "He's a good man. Honorable. He threw himself in danger's way to protect me before. I'm just returning the favor."

Gaara winced as a soft touch to his spine sent chakra disruptively through his system. He gasped as he fell forward, paralyzed neatly. Hinata let him drop, before hurrying over to Naruto. Checking his pulse, she frowned at his erratic heartbeat, his dilated pupils, and shallow breathing. He wasn't even really unconscious, just unaware of what was going on around him. His eyes locked onto hers for a moment, azure eyes wide in pain. "This strange man, and his fierce desire for freedom does not make him a thorn in my side." Pressing a syringe into his neck, she watched as he slumped, relaxing visibly. Turning to stare at Gaara's figure, she clenched her teeth. "Just in yours." Laying Naruto's head down gently, Hinata stepped back towards the collapsed redhead. Yanking back on the shaggy head, she tilted his head to face hers. "Ready to finish this?"

He grimaced, furious and utterly consumed by his own thoughts. "Hn." His eyes trailed down to stare at the sand below his nose, wet and clumped. "I cannot believe it. In the end, I couldn't do it. I couldn't save them." Shaking his head slightly, the Sand Bijuu vessel grunted. "My reason d'être, my reason of being, will be gone now. And there was nothing I could do. Pathetic. Weak. Shell." Nodding softly, he stared at the ground, empty-eyed. "Finish it. I won't care anymore once I'm dead. I shouldn't care as it is."

Hinata's knife flashed. It grazed his nose, scraping sand off, and digging into the wet sand beside his head. "No."

"Fool, what are you doing?" Gaara snarled softly under his breath. "You're going to pay for any weakness with your life. That is the Akatsuki."

Slowly, she kneeled in front of him and stared straight into his dark-rimmed, sleepless eyes. "I am not the Akatsuki. I am not a murderess, believe it or not. That's your thing."

"You are soft."

"So are you, Mister Reason d'être." A chakra inflamed palm smashed into his forehead. "Now, good night and good riddance." The body before her relaxed further. "Save whom you have to save. Live for whom you believe you need to live for." Standing slowly, she yanked the blade from the ground and hoisted Naruto onto her back. "And I will do the same."

Seconds later, the there was only Gaara, his prone body lying in the spattering rain, drenched through and through.

The clouds above roiled and grumbled, but spat no more fire. Their work was done, their day was over. They had little care of what had transpired beneath them. After all, they were only clouds.

--------

I am particularly proud of this chappie. Dunno why, just liked it. I tried to keep Gaara IC, but it's incredibly hard because his situation is utterly different from the canon Gaara. It is to laugh. XD My greatest problem with this chappie is that I went straight for the solution to the problem, instead of having them duke it out uselessly. But then again, I like solutions.

Also, it's good to hear from you folks. Seems my (albiet small) fan base is still hanging about for this odd little story. As for the bird/worm refrences, well, those are utterly unintentional, believe it or not.

Anyway, today's song: **Hurt **by the esteemable (yet dead) **Johnny Cash.** If you don't know who that is, you need to...I dunno, shoot yourself in the foot? I'm against suicide and all that, so. XD This chappie title is totally unrelated to the story so far, and would have made more sense in another chappie, but I was listening to the song, and even put in a 'quote' from the song in. Yes, yes, it's a good quote. Impress me by telling me exactly where and what quote from the song I used.

See ya 'bout,

-Raz


	8. Hysteria

---ooo---

**Hysteria**

"The problem we face has reached a new plateau, my friends. Lives depend on these recent events and the situation has a high possibility of escalating into something we cannot handle. In fact, we're not entirely sure we can handle it now. This meeting has been called with this in mind, and is now open to discussion and argument."

Tsunade took a deep breath, regarding the men and women seated at the table. At the other end of the table sat one that wasn't actually there at all. Delphi watched quietly from her virtual seat, recording and analyzing data. Among the leaders of Konoha sat Orochimaru, the Four House Heads, and Kakashi from the Royal Guards. The rest were an assortment of prominent business leaders and politicians. Tsunade couldn't help but think of how rumors spread among these dignitaries as easily as it spread among high school girls. She was there to quell rumors and perhaps work on a solution. This was not a matter to leave people in the dark about. Well, at least not these people. The population would have to wait. Deny information to gather it, avoid hysteria at all costs, and all that other sociopolitical propaganda.

Nodding softly to Delphi, Tsunade sat back to watch the holo-projection in the center of the table. A sphere with a 360 degree view of a scene played out in high-speed. "At 1500 hours two days ago, this scene was captured by one of my idle subsystems, monitoring the lightning storm over the Fourth Quadrant forest." Delphi tapped a virtual pencil against the hardwood table. She'd chosen a dignified image of a graying, yet graceful woman of 50. "I cannot imagine _why_ my system did not notify me of the massive amounts of chakra being expelled at the sight, and it was by pure chance that I happened to glance over the files for evaluation." The image showed a tiny pinprick of red light flicking around a bulky blob of shifting sands. Lightning strikes momentarily flooded the room with an unearthly blue-purple color, then cleared to displayed three tiny human forms below. Then the camera moved away from the scene, as if it hadn't seen anything unusual. "It was tracking lighting strikes, and was set so that it would look for damage. Had I seen this live, I would have been able to zoom in, but no details are visible as it stands." Delphi glanced to Tsunade, who nodded.

"Delphi's being blinded?" The youngest among them spoke. Uchiha Sasuke, the only living member, and therefore Head of, the Uchiha House. "How is that even possible?"

A business man with a long, fuzzy white beard scowled slightly. "It's not possible, that's the problem. Delphi is a living brain, a living consciousness. She's not a computerized AI that can be tricked with codes and hacks."

Delphi shifted in her chair, to show she was uneasy, but the movement was more for the sake of the congregation than for herself. "I'm aware of what I can and cannot do. And so is Master Uchiha. However, I can be tricked, but not by such things as powerful coding. There is the possibility that my very tissue is being...tampered with." She stared levelly at all of the gathered.

They all knew what that meant. Lab assistants, tissue tenders, and nutrient producers were all on the payroll of everyone in the room. The problem would have to be internal to be feasible. "Perhaps we have a traitor," Delphi said softly.

Slowly, all gathered glanced around. Who's Judas? All employees were carefully monitored by Delphi and by the organizations. One or the other could be tricked, but the window grew incrementally small when you tried to trick both. And to be untraceable in such actions, it would be nearly impossible. So it was highly possible that it was one of the gathered that had committed treason in some way. But so far, no one was willing to give up their secrets.

Tsunade let it all play out, then she nodded to Delphi again. "There is another problem, and I think you all noticed it." The holo rewinded and then stilled on the giant blob of sand. It had been highlighted, and the image blown up so that it would stand out more clearly. "Any ideas?"

One by one, the committee began to murmur. "That's..." Araika Uzumaki spoke now, face slightly pale. "That's the Legendary Sand Beast. Shukaku. But...that's a myth!"

The others slowly realized this as well. "If that's a myth, than what's it doing lumbering around in our forests," growled the LumberCo. head at Araika. "That's not an imaginary boogeyman tearing up that old building.

"Perhaps we should examine this a bit more closely," intoned Orochimaru, garnering attention in his own special way, without once raising his voice. "I believe that the Uzumaki House is a tad quick to jump to conclusions."

"I agree," said another. About half of the room nodded in agreement with the Orochimaru.

"Has the Regent seen this?" Orochimaru said softly, this time looking at Tsunade, the perpetual smirk more antagonizing now. "Tell me you've at least made an attempt to contact our leader."

Tsunade's jaw set, and her mouth grew into a straight, tight line. That man irked her above all others. Her one time childhood friend. "Of course...I've made an attempt."

"He didn't answer."

"Not as of yet."

Again, the room murmured and whispers rippled. Delphi was the one to quiet the mutterings. "The Regent perhaps sees it fit to let us handle it. Historically, the Regent would not answer if the situation is not grave enough. Or perhaps there is an edict in the works at the moment. No one can say what the Regent thinks, or speak on our leader's behalf."

"Thank you, Delphi," Tsunade spread her arm out to change the scene, but Delphi did it for her. She nodded her thanks. "I would like to remind the congregation that Delphi is much, much older than any of us, and that it would be prudent to listen to an objective and wise voice." The Holo changed again, this time into a diagram of statistics taken from readings of the camera recording. "Again, due to the fact that Delphi is blinded to certain criteria, this information was not privy to us for nearly a day. However, Delphi was able to gather and average the information. Around the time that this...unidentified object or organism appeared, chakra levels spiked unnaturally high. There is a slight problem. The energy increase _is_ correlated to the large creature, but the bulk of the reading was of this smaller, red object...here." The holo zoomed onto a small, humanoid red blur, trailing a crimson tail like a comet. "This is the main source of the reading. This small red dot." Another nod to Delphi. "I'd like to show you another image not taken during this time."

Araika and Sekkun both drew a harsh breath as a video of their adopted son, coated in trailing red chakra, jumping from a truck roof through a Falcon windshield.

"First of all, I'd like to state that secrets are very, very damaging to the integrity and structure of Konoha." Tsunade fixed the Uzumaki House with a glare. "Now, you best start explaining why it is you instantly jumped to the myth of the Bijuu, O House of the Fox."

---

Drawing breath sharply through her nose, Hinata gently felt the healing cut under her hair, wincing slightly. She could still feel the grit of sand everywhere, even after successive washings. Sighing, she glanced at herself in the mirror. Stepping to her room, she pulled a blue tanktop, a short skirt, and some sneakers. Blue socks to go with the blue shoes, of course. Frowning, she tugged at the clothes as she regarded herself in the mirror. Doing a small turn, she gave herself a quick look over. "Mm, wonder if it's cute enough," she mused, before turning a faint shade of pink. "Oh, who cares," she chided herself, and shook her head slightly.

"Madame?" A butler rapped softly on the door. The AI recognized him and granted access. "Madame, I have your meal." Carting in a tray of food, he bowed. "All you requested. Have you had a change of mood lately?" The butler glanced down at the food. Two hamburgers, a bowl of macaroni and cheese, grilled cheese sandwiches, a glass of milk, a bottle of wine, and a glass of orange juice. "You've always preferred...a higher taste."

She fixed him with a look. "Lumi, honestly, I just feel like eating something different, is all. No need to psychoanalyze my food."

Lumi grunted softly, then smiled. "Ah, do you mind if I take a cheese sandwich? I haven't had one since childhood."

Hinata giggled, and rolled her eyes. "Taking away food from a growing girl's very mouth? Fine, fine, if you must." She flicked her wrist playfully at her long time friend.

The old gentleman smiled, picked one up, and bowed out of the room. "Ah, all too true, Madame. Enjoy." The door clicked behind him.

Sighing, she waggled her head. Then, as if remembering something, she started. "Oh. AI, lock door. No access." A click, and the door sealed. "AI, open wall panel. Passphrase: Brilliant night sun."

Another click. This time, a section of the wall pivoted, opening into a dim-lit interior. Pushing the cart through, she glanced at the bed set against the far wall. No windows here. This was her hidden weapon room. She knew full well what she was doing would send her father into an early grave. Or her. The Shinobi were a fighting group, and not to mention a revolutionary group. He'd have to kill her with his own hands to absolve the family name if anyone discovered her connection.

Pulling up next to the bed, she glanced at the huddled form beneath it. "Not awake yet, huh?" she whispered with some disappointment. After the fight with Gaara, she'd dragged Naruto's prone body all the way home, recovering her car, and transporting him silently through the house. She'd tended for the massive gash, and wrapped him in bandages as best as she knew how. She even tried some healing techniques, but it was the most she could do without alerting the world to the fact that she'd smuggled something potentially dangerous into the City, not to mention the House. Throughout it all, he hadn't woken up. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she tried one of the hamburgers, then set it down. "Mm. How can people eat this?"

Setting her hand on the lump beneath the blankets, she shook him softly. It took her a full second to realize that there was no breath in the lump. Or bones. Whipping the blanket off, she inhaled sharply. Pillows. "Where...?"

The door to the room slowly clicked shut. She spun to see to blazing eyes staring back in the dim room. "N-Naruto? What are you doing?"

Naruto stepped forward, eyes flicking up and down, as if assessing her. His mouth opened slowly into a smile, revealing fangs. "Oh, good morning." His voice dipped into a two-tone quality, as if there another voice speaking behind his tongue. "You bandaged me up, right? Hinata Hyuuga, yeah?" He nodded, stepping closer, molten eyes flickering to blue, then back

"You...you don't seem to remember very well. That chakra hasn't been flushed out of your system yet." She smiled nervously as he stepped right up to her. Hinata could feel his breath, hot and ragged. "H-how do you feel?"

The smile turned into a long grin. "Warmmmmm..." This time, his voice thickened and remained so, the grin turned malicious. "You're into him, aren't you? Heh, how amusing. Ya know, I don't usually go for humans, but this kid's mind is polluting me, or something." He reached out and grabbed her arm.

"Wh-what are you doing? Let go!" Trying to wrench away from his grip, Hinata winced at the grip. It felt like iron. "You're not yourself. Lie down, Naruto."

"I'm afraid Naruto's absent at the moment, girl." Pulling her towards himself, the Kitsune smiled from behind Naruto's face. "I can hear your heart. You're excited." A rough hand pulled her against his body, warm, hard muscle against softer flesh. "You're body doesn't lie like your lips do."

She stiffened as she was pulled into a harsh kiss, bruising her lips as his burning skin caught hers. Hinata squeaked, trying to pull away. The arms released her, allowing her a quick run to the door. Locked.

"Oh, come now. Tell me you didn't enjoy it. You stare, you blush, you stammer. Heh, the child is, of course, consciously oblivious." This time, he grabbed her from behind, his arm grabbing her wrists and holding them behind her back. Pushing Naruto's mouth beside her ear, he chuckled softly to her, tongue lightly touching her earlobe. "I'd say his heart is currently distracted by another. I, on the other hand, am not. I never knew humanity had a good side, but I do believe I've found it."

"H-humanity? Where's Naruto? Bring him back!" she gasped softly, unable to turn her head to look at him. He had grabbed her chin, and was tipping her head from side to side as he inhaled at her neck, her hair. Every time he touched her, a bolt of electricity seemed to arc from his flesh to hers. She couldn't help but shudder. "P-please stop."

"Very well, deny it." The Bijuu did not release her this time. "I doubt I'll be here for much longer. But my seal is weakening. While we wait for it, I'd like to try something? A little experiment that'll remind you that I'm never far enough away."

Pain suddenly flashed behind her ear as a fang pierced the skin. A tiny rivulet of blood ran down the side of her neck and into the hollow of her clavicle. Slowly, the Bijuu dragged his fang down, down, to the nape of her neck, where he sank his teeth in without hesitation. Hinata struggled fiercely, inhaling through her nose in sharp intakes as he withdrew from the bite. Slowly, he dragged his thumb over the wound, and watched as a small fox shaped tattoo-like, black insignia formed from the bite mark. "There. Now, you are bound to me and the kid. When we feel pain, you'll feel pain. You'll be able to sense where we are. Distance isn't an option. If we die, the mark'll disappear, and the bond is broken, but I'm immortal, and I need to keep the kid alive." The gravelly voice began to waver and weaken, fading in and out. "You won't forget me now."

He let go of her, then stepped back, staggering, as the chakra finally escaped Naruto's body. Bonds cost energy. There was a dull thud as a limp body hit the ground like a sack of meat.

Slowly, Hinata brought her hand up to the fox-scar. It didn't hurt anymore. Fingering it, she winced.

This was not a good omen.

---

The winds had picked up during the meeting. Now, they screamed among the narrow spaces between skyscrapers and picked up paper and other trash to stir it idly before casting it against some obstruction. Sasuke leaned against the railing of the balcony, watching the world eighty stories below with a cool detachment. The sun was setting rather unspectacularly, slipping down under the wall beneath artificial clouds. But at the very last moments of its daily life, it spewed brilliant color over all the fluffy clouds, splashing them with deadly blood-reds and bruised purples. The tomoes in his eyes spun idly, staring uncaring, his mind lost in thought. "Stop sneaking around," he intoned almost beneath his breath, as if it were a careless thought thrown at the wind.

There was a soft grunt of disappointment, and an upside-down pink head poked over the bottom edge of the balcony. Standing parallel to him, Sakura watched the world from her inverted position before flipping onto the side of the balcony and then beside him. Chakra evaporated from her feet as she joined the Head in his quiet no-longer-solitude. "You always now," she groaned without looking at him.

"You should know by now, Haruno," he says simply, without feeling. Now, the city seems to awaken, and fall asleep all at the same time. The sun disappears altogether, and the lights of civilization begin to flicker into being. Street lights, neon lights, car lights, apartment lights, billboard lights, and a thousand others blink awake like eyelids opening from a startling dream. "Anyway, there are complications now."

"I know," sights Sakura, turning her back to the world and directs her attention on her cold friend. "We heard. Bijuu, a compromised Delphi, traitors, silent Regents, and on and on, and on. This is the most exciting thing to happen in current history." The wind buffets them both for a moment, and her hair whips around. Pushing it from her eyes, she waits for the wind to abate, staring at Sasuke. "This will help us. What's the Eye say?"

"We will become active as soon as we acquire Naruto's allegiance. But there's a time limit on that. We'll eventually have to act without him if he doesn't turn." Blood red eyes flick towards jade green. "And if he doesn't turn, he's a wildcard and must be eliminated." As easily as they look, the eyes slide away towards the darkening sky. Stars have begun to appear again

At this, Sakura frowned, crossing her arms over her chest, trying to catch her friend's elusive glance. "He'll turn. I'm confident in Hinata. She's got a lot of hidden strength, especially when challenged."

"She's _attracted_ to the idiot," Sasuke spit over the balcony in derision. "He'll probably have more sway over her than she on him. She's also as see through as crystal. There's no deception in her, and therefore, will never make a truly good shinobi. She is too easily read."

"I disagree," laughed Sakura. "She's got more than it takes to be a shinobi. Hidden strength is _hidden_, you see."

"You didn't come here to chat with me, Sakura," Sasuke said abruptly, ignoring her searching eyes. "You're rather easy to see through as well."

That shut her up for a moment. Slowly, she smiled, a thin, sad little smile. "Well, actually, I came to see how you were. You seem...disaffected nowadays." Setting a hand lightly on his shoulder, she bit her lip. "When you helped form the team, you were full of passion for this mission. We're fighting for our freedom, you know, and now..." She trailed off, shrugging. "You're not fighting for freedom anymore."

Flicking her hand from his shoulder, Sasuke finally turned towards her. "If you're worried about me, stop. I still fight for the same reasons."

"You're fighting for revenge, Sasuke!" cried Sakura suddenly, before her features took on a pained expression. "Revenge against a brother that may or may not still be alive. And it's tearing you apart from us. From...me."

Anger twisted his face suddenly, and he got right into her face, the lines around his mouth hard, the tomoes in his eyes swirling madly. "From you?" he hissed. "Sakura, I'm going to tell you now what I've told you a thousand times over. Drop it. 'We' aren't going to happen."

She flinched, perhaps from his intense proximity, perhaps from his words. She wasn't sure herself. Suddenly, she was breathing hard, nostrils flaring. "Then don't do it from us. Do it for you." Her eyes, wide now, flicked over his face, boring holes into his eyes. The wind kicked up again, and her hair fluttered about again. "You're in a cage, Sasuke," she almost whispered, voice barely heard over the wind. "You're beating at the walls, and all you're doing is tearing yourself apart."

He raised his hand, and she flinched again. But his hand stayed raised. There was no blow. "You have _no_ idea what you're talking about, Haruno. Stay out of my affairs." Brushing past her, he turned to leave, but stopped at the door. Without turning, hand on the door, his voice softened. "Forget me, Sakura. This infatuation's doing you no good."

Sakura sat out in the window long after the door had swung shut, leaving her alone. Fist pressed against her teeth, she bit down on her knuckle and hissed harshly. But there were no tears.

Thank God there were no tears.

--------

Hullo, hullo. Yes, it's late. Yes, it's sort of cop-outy. But there's gonna be a slight lag in the pace, due to...lack of inspiration. I write the beginning and ending of the stories, then sorta slack on the middle. So, I'm trying to make the middle strong through inspiration. Yes. Yes indeed.

Anyway, today's title? **Hysteria** by Muse. I likes teh Muse.

-Raz


	9. Pain

--ooo--

**Pain**

Here beneath the ground, breath, life, time, seemed frozen. The dull glow of chakra-laced sands, the fiery breath of the geothermal heat, the cold dampness that conflicts with that fire, and the dancing shadows blended into a heavy atmosphere laced with the smell of sickly-sweet smell of decomposing corpses. Nine figures stood at their own form of attention, watching their Leader with scrutinizing stares. Pale lights flickered in the collective eyes, if there were eyes. Finally, the Leader spoke, almost too softly to be heard, almost too loudly for the cavern. "The Key has slipped through our grasp. I say...we recruit some help." The widened Rinnegan eyes lowered ever so slightly to stare at a singular member. "Zetsu?"

A bi-colored face raised, mismatched eyes immobile between the jaws of the massive Venus Fly-trap. Then, he was gone.

The Leader slowly lifted a small quantum chip in his fingers. "What do we want?"

"Freedom," came the hushed, collective breath of the now eight members.

"How shall we get what we want?"

"By all means necessary," came the voices once more.

White ringed eyes closed, then nodded, the six studs in the Leader's nose glinting in the pale, red light. His hand closed over the chip, and turned away. "Let's go, Konan."

Steady clink of silverware, the soft grating of metal against ceramic, hushed conversations and laughter, soft violin music pervaded the atmosphere of the restaurant, a picture of subtle opulence and overpriced dishes that include roasted snails. Tsunade patted her lips softly on the white, linen napkin and frowned slightly at the information scrolling on her hand monitor. "Hm."

"Hm? That's such an odd way to greet someone."

She started, fork falling from her fingers and onto the plate with a sharp 'clink'. "Oh, um, I didn't know I was greeting someone." She smiled smugly at Kakashi as he sat slowly in the chair opposite to her. "Well, obviously, you have something to report, or you wouldn't be bothering me as I eat."

Kakashi waved her off in his usual, airy way. "Something to report? Well, aside from the lack of anything going on, I'd say I'm reporting how too quiet it is." His visible eye creased as he smiled behind his mask. "And besides, it's really sad that you're eating all alone. Thought I'd give you some company."

The City's Mediator snorted softly, waving away the information on her hand, before picking up the fork again. "I can't believe they let you into the restaurant dressed like that." She pointed the utensil at his fighting uniform, and he rolled his eye.

"Eh, you flash a little badge, and they'd let you get away with murder."

"That's not a comforting thought, Scarecrow."

"Take it as you will."

He paused, as if thinking, and she took the opportunity to chew on some salmon. When he kept his silence, however, she sighed and squinted at him. "You have a hunch?" she asked sarcastically.

"Not...a hunch, per se. More like a gut feeling."

"You're probably just hungry. Order something."

He rolled his eye, and hailed a waitress, who smiled and bowed to him. Ordering something quickly, he turned back to Tsunade. But before he could say anything, the waitress piped up in a quiet, but unabashed voice. "Excuse me, but are you Lady Tsunade? The Mediator?"

That caught the blonde's attention. She looked up from her plate, and nodded, eyebrows arched. "Yes, that's me. What can I do for you?"

Smiling, the waitress pulled an origami flower from her hair and set it down beside Tsunade's plate. "I'm a great admirer of yours, ma'am. Please accept this gift." She bowed, smiled softly, then backed away, still bowing.

"Huh..." Tsunade reached for the flower, but Kakashi's hand grabbed her wrist.

"Wait! That thing's charged with chakra," he hissed, reaching for it. The moment his fingers brushed it, it burst into small flame, incinerating swiftly. People started in their seats at the sudden noise, and the musicians stopped.

The paper was gone in seconds. In its place sat small quantum chip, blue plastic unmarred by the flame. Slowly, Tsunade picked it up, and eyed it. "Wha-?" Her hand monitor suddenly flickered, projecting a small hologram.

Night had long fallen on the city. Along each principal road, trees had been planted to add a touch of greenery to the otherwise glass and concrete world. In front of one specific building, two ancient behemoths towered over the street and cast shadows over the asphalt. These two trees swayed slightly in a breezeless night.

"_I realize this is inopportune for you, Mediator. Flaming paper roses and viral holographics do not a nice evening make. But as you enjoy your dinner, your world is about to change drastically."_ The figure in the hologram made no attempt to disguise himself. The ringed eyes stared out from the fair face. A shock of orange hair was highlighted by an odd green-reddish light. _"We require something that has eluded us. You will help us. Now, you wonder why I should have the audacity to ask such a thing? Well, you have no choice, really."_

The ancient trees crackled slightly, and seemed to grow a little longer. With a sudden ferocity, they lurched towards the building, their trunks bending without breaking. Their roots crawled from beneath the pavement and began to wind themselves around the base of the skyscraper, piercing the foundation. Trunks began to twist and wind like living, wooden worms, bursting into through the front doors and slithering over marble, wrapping around columns. Their roots sprang in and out of the floor, puncturing and showering the empty lobby with chunks of stone and motar. Like spears, the crown of the trees pierced into the second and third floors, taking time to wrap around structural pylons, snapping them like balsa wood.

"_At this moment, something peculiar is happening on First and Crossway Boulevard. Something pivotal. And something that no doubt will draw your attention."_ Tsunade was distracted from the hologram as guests began to look out the restaurant's windows, out over the city's rooftops. She stared with them incredulously as two trees, now entangled with one of the city's biggest high-rises, began to constrict, crushing the building as if two hands were crushing a grape. Glass burst and showered down in little explosions.

"_By now, you've probably realized which building this is. Considering the importance of this building, and the considerable secrecy that it entails, I believe you also realize that we are not petty criminals or mindless terrorists. We have a great deal of information, and are ready and willing to use it."_

Somewhere, from right next to her ear, Delphi screamed. She shrieked in pain, her voice convulsing digitally and quavering like a broken telephone signal. Clasping a hand to her ear, Tsunade winced.

The roots dug deep, deep, deep into the building's foundation, through or around steel doors with the famous pressure so often exhibited when an oak raises a section of sidewalk. Far below the earth, those roots burst into a cavernous room, cutting through structure after structure. Panels burst, revealing grey tissue matter inside the room's walls. Delphi. Blood dribbled as wooden stakes were driven through exposed tissue. Computers erupted as saplings grew rapidly through them.

The voice in her ear slowly faded into a whimper as Delphi began to shut down, her subsystem's alarms slowly dying away. "Ts-Ts-Tsunad-de...H-help." A hiss of static, then, nothing.

It came down. All of it. Like Goliath killed by David's stone, it toppled in on itself, swallowed itself, and came to rest with deafening noise and grumbling kilo-tons of dust clouds.

Tsunade's fingernails scratched across the glass, her ears bleeding from Delphi's anguished howls. "No. That's not...possible."

"_We realize that you have a backup copy of Delphi's mind, but we'll leave that alone for now. My suggestion is to move it. Maybe we won't find out where you put it."_ Sarcastic as the remark was, the inflection was wrong and flat. _"Our demands are in no way simple, and in no way enlightening. We want our freedom. For that, we require the Key. Give it to us. It's in your best interest to do so. Otherwise, these little incidents will occur far more often."_ The hologram cut out, but it went unnoticed.

"I think...our situation has just become critical, Tsunade." Kakashi stared out at the ruined building incredulously.

Tsunade stood silent, hands pressed against the glass. Spiderweb cracks spread out over the window as she applied furious pressure. She just stared out at the world fraying at its edges.

First, there was nothing.

Then, black.

Finally, red. Naruto groaned, screwing his eyes up and avoiding the light, trying to bury deeper into sheets. His world rustled and hugged him warmly. Sighing dreamily, he buried his head into his pillow, breathing deeply through his nose. "Mmm...hm?" Pulling his head clear of the bed, he looked down at the pillow. "This...ain't mine," he grumbled. Sitting up swiftly, he glanced around with bleary eyes. It was a weapons room, from the looks up it. "Where...?" Throwing his legs over the edge of the bed, he hissed, grasping his side. Pulling up the nightshirt he was wearing, he examined the bandage on his ribs. Rubbing it gingerly, he stood up, and found his clothes. His shirt and jacket were mended, exactly where the gash was.

Grunting in bewilderment, he pulled them on, yanked on his pants, and shoved his feet into shoes that felt as if they were full of sand. "Sand?... Gaara! Ngh..." Clenching his teeth, he gripped his head as pain lanced through. Glancing around, he saw the door, and moved towards it, rubbing at his temples as the pain subsided. Apparently recognizing him, it opened with a soft click. The room beyond was obviously a girl's room, and the hallway beyond that made it very clear that he where exactly he was. This was the Hyuuga House, the House's seal engraved on the walls and doors. The pine floors creaked subtly beneath his feet, and windows faced into an open courtyard, sunlight flooding the hall in patches of warm yellow.

He didn't acknowledge the kick until it caught him in the chest, lifted him off his feet, and slid him across the polished floorboards into a wall. "Oh, this oughta be good," murmured a young-ish voice as a long, thin hand placed a kitchen knife against his Adam's apple.

Naruto followed the hand up the arm, along the line of the slim neck, and to the youngish face. It looked exactly like Hinata's except with longer hair...and a rather unwelcoming hard frown. Blue eyes met pale pearl ones, with furrowed black eyebrows. "Uhhhh...Yo?"

Pursing her lips, the girl looked back and forth for a moment, before smirking unkindly. "Shut it. I wanna know why you're sneaking out of my sister's room. I also wanna know how you got in." The smirk vanished swiftly as a new idea dawned on her. "Are you sleeping with my sister or something? Or are you one of the terrorists that killed Delphi?"

That last inquiry caught him by surprise. "What?" he croaked. "What happened to Delphi? I didn't even know she _could_ be killed."

"I don't wanna hear your lies." She intoned a command to her hand monitor, and it flickered twice. "My father'll deal with you."

"And...who's your father, exactly?"

This time, he got the benefit of an arrogant grin. "Hiashi Hyuuga. Head of the Hyuuga House."

Cold sweat beaded on his forehead. "Oh...Well, this sucks."

It smelled warm. Warm and green. The inner courtyard was fully open to the air, the birds, the trees. A quiet spring had given rise to a natural, clear water pond in the middle of the courtyard, where a massive oak had grown, it's crown higher than the third story of the House. Simple and unpainted, a gazebo stood beneath the tree, covered in ivy and flowering bougainvillea. It was here Naruto was dragged, rather forcefully, by Hinata's yet unnamed sister, and pushed towards the wooden structure's doorless entrance.

"Come in." A man sat on a pillow before a low table, sipping softly at a porcelain cup. He certainly was Lord of the House. Long hair spilled over his shoulders and down his chest, fine silken clothes, and no hand monitor. Apparently, he was above having his body tech-altered. However, a small, sleek communicator sat by his hand, as well as a long sword. "I hear you've been sleeping with my daughter."

"Uh, not...actually?" Naruto considered his escape routes, but several guards had come from nowhere to stand around to watch him. The girl moved forward and sat at the table with her father. She eyed a pillow across from her father, as if to tell him to sit down. Sighing and rubbing his head furiously, Naruto sat.

"Who are you?"

"Um, that's...really complicated?"

Hiashi eyed him coolly over his cup. "If we are going to talk about my daughter and various dealings you might possibly have had with her, you are going to tell me your name."

"Uhhhh, well, first, I didn't sleep with your daughter, so, um, I guess that means I don't have to tell you my name, right?" The sword point nicked his throat, drawing a thin trail of blood. "But since we're all friends here," Naruto stammered swiftly and nervously, staring down the sword blade at the man before him, "I guess there's no problem. I'm Naru...kun." The sword pressed a little deeper. "Fine! Naruto Uzumaki."

Hiashi withdrew the blade and set it down, before resuming his tea-drinking. After a minute or two, he glared at the blonde. "So, what's the Uzumaki Heir doing in my House? And furthermore, how'd did he get in without my knowledge?"

"You're...not surprised about the whole Heir thing?"

"It's bad form to be surprised. Aside of that, your parents have all ready divulged information on you." Sip. "It seems, also, that a certain entity has taken up residence in you. The only unknown variable seems to be you...in...my...House." The last few words were hissed angrily.

Naruto fidgeted. "Soooo, what're you going to do? Turn me over to my House?"

"That would be against my interests. No, it would be far better to keep you here, possibly in a cell, and a secret." The glare intensified. "But since you've had relations with my daughter, that changes the matter."

"I didn't sleep with Hinata, all right? I'm not lying."

"Oh, come now. There's no use in denying it. You were caught sneaking out of my daughter's room in rumpled clothes, unwashed, and sleepy." The cup came down with a sharp clank. "As a Lord caring for an Heir, and most importantly, as a father caring for a daughter, this situation is absolutely unwelcome and incredibly problematic."

Naruto groaned, and buried his face in his hands. "For th' love of—Hinata!"

At that moment, the Heir rounded the corner and froze.

"Hinata, tell your dad I didn't have sex with you!"

She promptly passed out.

It was all a guard could do to catch her from cracking her skull on a gazebo column. From behind Naruto's turn back, he heard Hiashi sip at his cup again. "Troublesome child."

Naruto tried to catch some of the muffled conversation between Hiashi and Hinata from the next room. Hanabi, Hinata's previously forceful sister, sat patiently outside of the door, either ignoring the conversation to watch his every move, or listening to the conversation and watching his every move. Several guards hemmed him in as he sat on the floor, against the wall. He couldn't even get closer to the translucent privacy screen to listen. A door opened on the side of the room, and Neji walked in. His eyes briefly widened at the sight of Naruto, before his cold demeanor hardened and he walked past Hanabi and into the room.

Naruto caught a brief glimpse of Hiashi and Hinata sitting directly across from each other, arguing softly, both scowling. Then the screen folded closed. Neji's voice started up, and then there was a three-way conversation.

From what he could figure, he assumed Hinata was lying about the Shinobi and both of their involvement, and Neji...well, he was a wildcard, but doubtless he'd protect the Shinobi's secrecy. It continued for another hour, long after Naruto had lost interest and had begun to fiddle with his hand monitor, bored out of his wits.

Finally, the privacy screen dissipated, and Hiashi came to stand before him. Hinata and Neji both avoided his eyes. "Well, Uzumaki, it seems I was mistaken on a point or two. I am incredibly relieved to hear you have not spoiled my daughter's...integrity and innocence."

Hinata turned a furious shade of red, but didn't look up. Neji actually let slip a microscopic simper, the arrogant jerk.

"And Hinata and Neji, both of whom seem to know you, say that you are a runaway seek asylum from your parents and their abusive, totalitarian regime. While I frown upon desertion of House and family, this works wonderfully for my House." Hiashi shifted slightly. "I have chosen to give you this asylum. But you must also understand that you are now a political prisoner as well."

"What? You can't just keep me here against my will. That's...inhumane."

"I resent the term inhumane, and I'm sure you'll find your accommodations and freedom about the House everything but inhumane." The House Lord cleared his throat and glanced at Hinata. "I...understand you are a good friend of Hinata's, and even Neji has advocated for you, so, I will leave you in her care. She is competent enough not to be taken advantage of..." He let that hang in the air for a moment. Naruto just rolled his eyes. "And trust, no, fervently hope, that we don't have to have another one of these little...chats." Then, he abruptly turned on his heel and walked out stiffly. With him went Hanabi and the guards, leaving Naruto to stare angrily after him.

"He can't do that. I'm a friggen' human being, not a bargaining chip, or whatever he intends to use me for." A strong hand suddenly gripped his shirt and hoisted him up against the wall. "Yo, hey, let go!"

Neji sneered into his face, all but grinding his teeth in ill-concealed anger. "It is not your place to speak against the Lord of our House, you worthless _refuse_." The Hyuuga shook the blonde a little. "Know that I only advocated for you to preserve the Shinobi. If I ever have a chance, I'll dispatch of you and your worrisome habit of getting in the way and mucking things up."

"Let him go, Neji," Hinata said softly, still not meeting Naruto's eyes. "It's not his fault he's here, it's mine."

Silently, Naruto clasped Neji's wrist and twisted hard. There was a harsh crackling as wrist bones ground against each other painfully. The older boy released his shirt and stepped back, cursing softly. Glaring at him, then at Hinata, he hissed, "Both of you are so worthless. Nothing but burdens."

"Listen, ya li'l butt-wipe, I suggest you be a little nicer to your cousin. You can talk to me how you want, but she's family."

"She's not family I acknowledge. Heir or not, she's useless."

Naruto cracked his knuckles, and fell into a stance. "D'ya wanna fight over it?"

"Stop!" cried Hinata. They both looked at her. "Just...stop, all right?"

Neji all but spit at her, before turning around and leaving as swiftly as he'd come an hour before.

Hinata sighed, biting her lip. Her shoes were suddenly very interesting

"Why didn't you stand up to him?" Naruto straightened his clothes, glaring after Neji with a scowl. "You shoulda told him exactly what you can do."

"No, I know what I can do, and it's isn't much." She continued to stare at the ground. "Neji's good at stuff, and...I'm not."

"That's a load of bullcrap," growled Naruto. "Look at me!" He clapped a hand on her shoulder. She looked up, startled. "Don't ever, _ever_ let others tell you what you are. You tell yourself who you are, and then be it." He smirked. "'sides, if I remember correctly, I do believe I noticed you thrashing on Gaara a bit."

She blushed furiously. "You were awake for that?"

His face scrunched up, then shrugged. "Sorta? I could still hear a few things. Y'know, fading in and out." Slowly, he grinned, then laughed, letting his hand drop. "Anyway, I think I'm ready to join you guys."

Still blushing, she smiled slightly. "R-really? What changed your mind?"

"Well," Naruto sighed, rubbing his neck and staring at the ceiling. "I think, Gaara made me acutely aware of what sort of danger Konoha is dealing with now. I want to stop that." Finally, he let his eyes find hers. "And...freedom is becoming more and more appealing. I wanna know what's beyond the Wall."

Slowly, Hinata's smile widened, and she nodded resolutely. "All right, I'll show you how to get around without getting caught. But, um, first, let's go get that gash on your side treated with some actual medicine." She motioned for the door.

"This thing? It barely hurts," he laughed, slapping the wound under his clothes. Pain flared suddenly, and he winced. "All right, fine, let's get a look at it." He laughed and moved out the door

Hinata inhaled sharply as phantom pain cut into her ribs as well. She cleared her throat and moved after him, forcing a smile.

They left the room, Bound following Binder.

End Part I

* * *

All right, this is the end of part one, obviously. I didn't really expect this too be this long, but, yeah. You guys might have questions because of the disjointed way I write stories (this is, quite frankly, just a first draft). But let's see if I can't shed some light on a thing or two.

Hand Monitors: These are a sort of bio-electrical quantum imaging tech that's essentially 'tattooed' under the skin. It provides a wireless link through Delphi's subsystems to all inhabitants who own one. If you don't like them, you can get a communicator, which is basically a souped up cell phone.

The Bijuu's Convo during the fight: This...has very little to do with this story, but if I ever write a sequel, it'd be the central theme. The Mother and the Siblings are...well, that's a secret. ;) But it's pivotal as to why Bijuu exist at all, why there are Bijuu within the Wall, and what's required to get out. This is also the link between the Nine-Tails and why he can be (at least physically) attracted to a human.

Guns and other Tech: I could make this a super complicated, over technical fic. I could. I have the ideas, anyway, but, for the sake of brevity, these wonderous techs are not included. If you want, you can imagine a Ghost in a Shell world, if you will. Also, guns are not gonna be much talked about here either, because, well, they're not talked about in the manga, so, period. I'm trying to capture some of the essense of the original Naruto-verse.

Pain: All right, this is a song by Jimmy Eat World, and is very chapter specific. But if you follow the manga at all, you'll realize exactly why this is relevant. The song itself, well, is kinda innapropriate to the beginning of this chappie, but, whatever.

Anyway, I hope you guys have enjoyed this. And for those who review, I appreciate the gesture. If the story's good, say so, if it's bad, say it louder than you say the good stuff. :D Anyway, Part II starts soon. It'll be a time-skip, in accordance to the manga.

Ciao,

-Raz


	10. Intermission

--()--

**Intermission**

_2 of the third month_

_Two days after Naruto began to live in our House, the Regent passed a new law to the Council. The only reason I even heard about it was because my father expressed his vehement disapproval. Martial law has been instigated and all negotiations with the Akatsuki were to cease immediately. The Key, as the Leader of the Akatsuki called it, was not to be looked for, and no attempt may be made to even discover what it is. Father is furious, as now there is a curfew for all citizens of the Konoha City-state, no matter how high up the ladder you are. He was nearly man-handled by a few very short-sighted and stupid Royal Guards, but he managed to wave his low Security Number at them, and that managed to get them off his tail. But the drive home was very tense. I could feel the anger coming off him like heat. When Naruto found out, he of course laughed himself hoarse. _

_Speaking of Naruto, in two short days, he all ready explored and memorized the entire House. Aside for the Restricted Areas, he's made a mental map of the place. I think he is very fond of the Inner Garden, which is really just a half acre of green in an enclosed courtyard on my wing of the House. It's a grassy hill, a small pond, and a large, ancient and twisted oak digging its roots down through the hill's crown and into the pond's edge. It's not even really a garden like the large one my father loves, with no proper flowers, or rock gardens. Just the pond, the hill, and the tree. Perhaps it is the view he enjoys. If you should climb the tree, you would find yourself looking out over the roofs of the House and onto the surrounding fields, the rolling green hills of my father's land. I found him napping in the branches twenty minutes ago when I called him for lunch. Surprisingly, he does not look at all peaceful when he sleeps. His body is tense, his mouth is set, and his eyebrows furrow. There's a passion in him even when he rests._

_15 of the third month_

_There was a call to meeting today by the Shinobi. The sub-mand always gives me a splitting headache, and mentioned to Naruto he was very lucky not to have one installed yet. He, however, was far too excited about sneaking out of the House to pay me or Neji much attention. It's as if that boy craves nothing from life but freedom. It's like he eats and drinks the stuff. Sporting a smug grin, he was sworn into secrecy and was welcomed into our pact. Ino and Sakura flustered him by pecking him on the cheeks, and Kiba started wrestling him to the ground and gave him a noogie. Boys._

_The Eye made an appearance through holo, and congratulated him as well. He also gave him a training schedule and assigned Neji in instructing him in the Hyuuga's martial art. Considering the fact that our way of fighting is so reliant on the Byakugan, and the fact that it's really a family tradition and shouldn't be taught to 'blonde smart-alecks with no intelligence', my cousin was understandably furious. The Eye...does not care. He continued on and spoke to Naruto about another instructor, one whom we are not familiar with, whom he named as simply The Arm. Understandably, this caused a commotion, as it hinted that our group was bigger than we had supposed. Naruto seems to be a catalyst for the unknown's insurgence. We returned home and went to sleep, all with much on our minds. Well, I know much is on my mind at least._

_20 of the fifth month_

_Neji is quite intolerable as of late. With much fury and grudging assent, he has begun to train Naruto. And now, he has taken it as an excuse to thrash to ever-living daylights out of him. My cousin is angry and upset, and I can even understand why, but why take it out on Naruto? I admire Naruto's persistence in the matter, anyway. No matter how often he is knocked about, he stands and listens without quarrel to Neji's overblown expectations of him and strives to do so. I had to take Naruto to the clinic earlier, with a broken rib. He heals uncommonly fast, so my pain was not great and drawn out. But during training sessions, I feel so miserable, as if I'm being beaten with a bat. No marks appear on my skin, but I can feel every blow and its ache afterward. Every rock as he falls and palm-strike. The first few days, I became violently ill, but now, I've grown accustomed to watching the fights and at least anticipating where it will hurt. _

_I've decided to help train Naruto. I'm as well-versed in our art as any other Hyuuga, and better. We train under the tree in the Inner Garden, and I am slowly coming to realize the beauty of the place. Before, I thought it underdeveloped, a lazy gardener's forgotten mistake. But there is a peace there. Nothing from the House can be heard and the way the wind plays in the branches of the oak and rustles in the cattails of the pond is soothing to me. The sunlight there seems strong and warm, like a heavy blanket on a cold night. It is there I seem to spend more and more of my time. And coincidentally, this means I spend a great deal of time with Naruto. I rarely speak much, and our conversations are always rather one-sided, with his talking of his House and the many things he enjoyed there, with the talk of his training and some new technique taught to him by Neji's grudging hand, with talk of his thoughts on the latest, more suppressing law the Regent has put forth. It seems every week our Immortal Leader gives us harsher laws. Perhaps he fears Akatsuki activity, and is trying to limit them through limiting his people. I fear it is not working. Naruto generally zones out if I try to talk politics, but anything else, he'll listen with moderate attention. But since he often listens with his eyes closed, face to the sun, he'll doze off and then awaken randomly with a shout. It's jarring and amusing all at once._

_Naruto would do well to learn our art quickly, else I might go mad. I can feel that mark on my neck, and stare at it often in the mirror. The Kyuubi has fingered me for some reason, and now I am all but a slave to his cruel joke. So fervently do I hope that the monster does not torture his host as he does me. Naruto does not deserve it._

_4 of the eighth month_

_Naruto, and he alone, was called away to a remote section of country near the Wall, where he is to spend the next two weeks training with the ambiguous Arm. He snuck away almost without telling me. He ran into me as I came into the kitchen, nearly smashed his sack full of food into me, and smirked, telling me in one breath that he was to train with The Arm and would be away. He left not half an hour later. It is suddenly very quiet in the House._

_Of other matters, the Akatsuki have destroyed another building, this one a Royal Guard headquarters, demanding The Key again. Again, the Regent's edict was to do nothing but to try and capture the renegades. No talks were to be had, no trying to look for the Key. They, of course, were far too smart to leave traces in the destruction, but the people are beginning to grow restless beneath the onslaught of curfew and the rough-handling and wrongful deaths of three citizens by skittish and aggressive Royal Guards. The Royal Guard Leader, Kakashi, tried to assuage people's fears and the guards were imprisoned and executed for their use of fatal force on innocents, but it did little or nothing for people who all ready have it set in their minds that the Royal Guards are out to kill them. The fear is spreading in Konoha, and it is almost tangible. People no longer walk the streets, no longer enjoy a coffee at the local café, and no longer leave their homes except for work and necessities. Indeed, even the Royal Guards are fidgety and worried. Many of their comrades and officers had been crushed by the collapsing headquarters, and everyone knew someone who died. They walk about, yelling and brandishing their weapons with hollow and sleepless eyes. _

_The Council are running themselves ragged as well. My Father comes home every night, exhausted, his regal air stripped from his body. He speaks to me of the how all ideas of trying to see what Akatsuki wants is shot down by the Regent and how there is constant back-stabbing in the companies of the Council. He speaks of fear and the knowledge that a traitor sits among them every day. All investigate each other as quietly as possible, and sometimes, they are found out. There is yelling, there is fear, there is fury, and no one knows what to do. Tsunade has her hands full with reviving Delphi, and the Uchiha House only sends a proxy now, in Sasuke's stead. I know the reason for that._

_Among the Shinobi, the Eye is increasing our activity. We have begun to actively gather intelligence on all underground organizations in the City and are constantly training. He expects something, no doubt. But he is not afraid, and I cannot fathom why. There is still a lax behavior about him, as if this is simply what must be done and what will come, will come. There is no sense of urgency about him, but about us, there is. Sasuke and Neji are training like a mad-men and hardly ever leave the simulation rooms. Sakura is spreading herself thin in training, intelligence gathering, and medical studies. Ino and Shikamaru are grinding themselves into the cracks of the City, infiltrating the organizations that don't see light. Kiba and I have been poring over books to find any precedence of a Key, or any hint of what the Akatsuki might want. And atop all that, I can feel Naruto, wherever he is, tearing himself apart with whatever new technique he is learning. These are trying times._

_19 of the eighth month_

_He's come back! Naruto's come back! I don't think I truly realized just how much I missed his company and voice. I can't stop smiling. Despite all the trying times and the furious training, it's like a weight's come off my shoulders. My hands are shaking and I have to stuff them into my pockets to stop them._

_We went out to the Inner Garden, and he spoke little of anything but his training. He would not speak of his teacher, however, but showed me what he'd learned. In two short weeks, he's developed something incredibly powerful. It's as if he's compacted massive amounts of swirling chakra into a ball the size of his fist. It tears things apart like cyclone._

_Afterwards, we simply sat beneath the tree, he munching on his lip thoughtfully, I letting my own thoughts run away from me. Suddenly, he turned to me and simply stared. So often, it seems as if he looks right though me, as if I were made of crystal and he could see whatever was behind me. But he truly looked at me this evening. Then, as suddenly as he'd begun to stare, he stopped, and shut his eyes to doze in that late afternoon sun. I left him there, breathing deeply in slumber, and for once, he wasn't tense. He was simply asleep._

--

Seriously, folks, you make me so depressed with the 'no-review'ing. Do you wanna see a guy cry? Look, look, giant tears of sorrow. ;-; Le weep!

Sub-Mand: Short for a sub-mandibular phone implant. A paper-thin organic/inorganic fusion of silicate and the host's tissue, it uses body chemicals to charge from its position on the surface of the mandible. It uses bone conduction to communicate and the Konoha dome to bounce its signals off of. It works almost like a short-wave AM frequency, but with a very specific, encrypted digital channel and a far more powerful, multi-dimensional quantum signal to attain greater distances with sharper clarity. Their highly expensive and mostly used for undercover stake-outs and top-secret communications among the Royal Guards.

The time leap would have seemed very stilted and oddly arranged if I'd just continued the story and had to explain everything that'd happened over the gap. So, I've decided to do Hinata Diary Excerpts. XD This may seem tired and worn-out, but it's effective in that it communicates exactly what I want it to. Besides, she seems like the one who's always watching stuff, and analyzing it in her head. So, yeah.

There'll probably be another two chapters of this. They're not hard to write, so they'll come easy, since I have a fairly clear idea of what I want to happen in the time between the main story parts.

-Raz


	11. Intermission Squared

--()--

**Intermission**

_7 of the final month_

_The snows are thick outside my window, nearly four feet, I should think. Yesterday, as I was walking about, I lost my footing and plummeted into snow bank. Neji and Naruto had great fun at my expense at this, but of course, Naruto helped me out._

_For the past few months, Naruto's progressed immensely. Despite the distinct lack of the Byakugan, he's managed to hone his chakra control. It's nowhere near even my level, but it is fine enough for his purposes. Essentially, he has had to memorize each chakra nexus and its approximate position and relation to each other in a body. With that, he's able to somewhat block, or at least hinder, chakra control in an opponent's body. However, he's blending our style with his own absolutely reckless and willy-nilly fighting style, which is more like an abandonment of sense and needs an enormous amount of luck, something which he, fortunately, has. He also implements whatever The Arm has taught him, which appears to be body manipulation and summoning. Unfortunately, he has no talent for either, but has managed progress through repeated practice._

_Ah, I almost forgot. The Winter Festival is nearly upon us. It seems as if our father, whom has become more and more stressed, will allow Naruto to go along with Hanabi and me, simply because he'd rather not listen to Naruto's incessant whining for a little free time outside the House. I don't blame either of them, but I wish they would cease being openly hostile to each other._

_10 of the final month_

_I've been dreaming lately. Of carnage, and blood, and desolate wastelands as far as the eye can see. There is one dream in particular that still lingers now, giving me chills. _

_I stand in the middle of nowhere, a desert with dry, cracked yellow-red earth beneath my bare feet. There is nothing in the distance, nothing near, and the ochre sky is almost indistinguishable from the horizon. There are no clouds, there is no sun. Suddenly, a storm sweeps from the south, tearing through the desert like a living thing. It comes far too fast to be a storm, however, and sounds as if the very earth itself is tearing itself apart. Billowing clouds sweep and grind the earth to nothing, and everything is suddenly charred. It sweeps past me like a thousand trains, then recedes, and I am safe, the only part of the wasteland un-charred being a small circle around my feet. _

_Slowly, the crisp, burnt earth cracks, and disgorges thousands of millions of billions of bodies, twisted, broken, their faces frozen in infinite screams, their eyes bubbling, their flesh falling from their bones, their blood a flood, an ocean. As one, they moan, then scream, then shriek, until it sounds exactly like the storm, then it is louder, and my ears are bleeding._

_A familiar voice speaks over the noise in a whisper, and I can't quite pinpoint where I've heard it before. "Behold, the world of man, my audience of one." There is a laugh, and two molten eyes. "Do you like this vision? Do you like this world? For this is my desert and my existence. And this is just a taste."_

_Then I wake._

_2 of the first month_

_Naruto and I have been training more often together, as Neji has begun to train in earnest. There has been a great amount of violence in the City, Royal Guards clashing with Akatsuki. Whole sections of the City have been evacuated, and then promptly destroyed in monstrously powerful fights. Sometimes, late at night, I lie awake and listen to the distant eruptions echoing off the Wall behind the House. Naruto sometimes stares over at the City from the oak tree, watching explosions reflected off the dome. He is angry and worried, but tries not to show it, giving me a big grin every time we meet to spar._

_Today, we tried an endurance training exercise, and we stood on the pond water for as long as possible. Naruto is frighteningly powerful and fast, but he still struggles with such simple things as water walking. They simply don't come easy to him. We stayed out late into the frigid night at his behest. I can still remember how he stood perfectly still, balancing on the ice-cold water, occasionally sinking in. At one point, he looked down and grinned. All he said was "Stars" and then promptly sank. He came back up, sputtering as he crawled over his own waves and sat bobbing up and down, smiling at me. The stars were indeed being reflected all around him, moving up and down with the ripples. I giggled (like a fool) and nodded. "You're sitting in stars, Naruto."_

_Then, dripping wet and freezing as he was, he laughed. "Someone said that if you reach for the stars, all you'll get is handfuls of mud." Shaking water out of his shaggy hair, he smirked. "I say, bring them down to earth and then grab 'em here." Standing, he stared at me for a moment. "Work smart, not hard." _

_I nodded and we stared at each other from across the pond. But I doubt he saw me._

_Does he ever really see me?_

_29 of the first month_

_It's been nearly a year since Naruto's come to stay with us. And now he's leaving to train again. For a year. My father has long since ceased to care about the politics of the House to care about Naruto's coming and going anymore, and has fairly forgotten he is even living with us. A great deal of other, heavier considerations have weighed on his mind. The Akatsuki pockets found by the Royal Guard are more often than not kamikazes or copycats, or a thousand other things but something significant. Most are not chakra-users, and are simply sycophants hoping to be noticed by the true organization, whom cannot be flushed out no matter what measures are taken._

_The Regent has been increasingly more oppressive, starting random searches in private homes and ordering everyone that is even suspected of Akatsuki sympathizing executed without trial and without hesitation. The Council has two empty seats now, having been suspected of plotting with Akatsuki. They were later found to be innocent, but far too late, as they'd been executed for nearly two weeks before that innocence was proven. Lady Tsunade's been run into the ground, having brought Delphi back online, but having to retrain the new city-mind with a great deal of forgotten information and routines. Then the duties of Mediator and a constant barrage of false information on the Akatsuki have caused a great deal of stress. She nearly broke down addressing the public, and has since disappeared into the labs, forsaking all other duties except Delphi._

_In this crazy, hectic times, my mind is being ravaged as well. That familiar voice in my dreams, I recognize it. It is the Kyuubi. He has begun to barrage my mind, teasingly knocking on the my psyche's door. And now is when Naruto must leave, right when I need an anchor the most._

_3 of the third month_

_The hole Naruto's departure has left aches. I have lost a great deal of sleep, because now, I am forced to converse with the Kyuubi no Kitsune everytime I sink into an exhausted dream. But...he has promised to reveal something to me. And I am intrigued. He speaks in hushed tones of a lost history. Of Bijuu and their origins. And, I cannot help by wonder. Hidden knowledge, revealed straight from the source._

_Aside from that, his presence is taxing. Each night, he visits my dreams, sometimes with lewd images, sometimes with carnage, sometimes with nothingness. I think nothingness is the worst, simply because I feel as if I am trapped in my own mind for a fraction of eternity. Endless nothing, and black. As if only my mind is left in an empty universe...I miss Naruto dearly, and I think the Kyuubi cannot stand this fact._

_19 of the third month_

_I am compelled, no, obligated to record my dreams now. The Kitsune has begun to explain history to me, and it seems as if these stories are simply that, stories. They cannot be true, but I doubt myself even as I say so._

_He appeared in my mind as a small fox, sitting curled up in a plush leather chair in the middle of a room with glass walls. There were no furnishings in the room, and outside the room, there was nothing. A chair appeared for me and I sat. And a very compelling story was spun for me._

"_I am ancient, Hinata," spoke the fox, opening his eyes wearily, his maw unmoving, his brass eyes unblinking. "I am nearly four million standard years old. Have you __**any**__ idea what sort of time span that is. Never in all my long existence have I revealed what I reveal now. But since never have I been sealed within a human body, the unprecedented should accompany the unprecedented." The blankness outside the walls bled into black, then bled into black with stars. And slowly, we were floating above a planet, blue and white and green and glinting with a sun's rays just breaking over the world's rim._

"_This is Earth," he explained, patiently, as if speaking to a child. "You've never heard of it. This is not a surprise. For millennia, the people within your Wall thought that that was the universe, and nothing was outside it. Of course, now you know better. Which is why the Regent now exists." I asked him what he meant by that, but he waved me away with a paw. "I speak of history, not current events."_

_Our glass room fell into the planet's atmosphere, dropping, dropping, dropping towards a small mass of land. "That, the island, is the United Kingdom, one of the many principalities of this Earth. At one point in its past, it was important, but has since fallen in its glory." We fell further still, into a city, somewhat more advanced and certainly odd in architecture, with buildings that reached too high and too square. "This is the city of dreaming spires, or Oxford, home of the oldest university in the English speaking world." The term 'English' was lost on me, but I dared not interrupt. "It is here where many achievements in science, law, mathematics, and a plethora of other subjects have advanced considerably." _

_We fell further still, towards a cluster of buildings of great age, through the ceiling of the University, and into a large laboratory. Massive machines hummed and blinked, thousands of computations and equations were scrawled on blackboards. A single man sat hunched in front of an odd monitor, tapping away at what I recognized was an analog keyboard, complete with plastic keys and a chipped edge. "It was here, in 2012 Anno Domini, where Chakra was hypothesized by a man named Rudyard Mandrake, a genius on par with someone else you've never heard of, by the name of Einstein." The fox hopped off his chair, onto the old man's bench, and then onto his desk. He stared at the figures scrolling along the monitor, and snorted. "Of course, his figures were somewhat off, and he, of course, did not call it Chakra, but something entirely different. He called it The Great Force." Kyuubi smirked, and wandered back to his chair. "People called him mad and rejected his findings. Something like what he described could not exist. It was preposterous."_

_The laboratory melted into black. Slowly, out of the black came an odd, sizzling orb, massive and fuzzy. I recognized it immediately. An atom, and I said so. "Correct. An atom, the building blocks of all matter." The atom froze in place, revealing the electrons on their mad journey around the nucleus. Slowly, our glass room sped towards the atom and into it, pushing into a proton, pushing down deep. Slowly, everything grew into black. Pinpoints of something began to form, and I made a tentative guess at subatomic particles. "Quarks, leptons, gluons, the building blocks of protons, neutrons, and electrons, elementary particles. Deeper we go, however."_

_Slowly, the last vestiges of matter became massive, and we saw the space between...something. "There was once a theory, called the String Theory, that original tried to explain gravity based on the idea that all matter is built on what can best be described as a 'string', or loops of one-dimensional rings oscillating at specific frequencies." The loop described slowly came into view. "The theory was that by explaining this theory, everything would be explained. Space, time, matter, anti-matter, energy, anti-energy, black holes, white holes, wormholes, space curvature. Everything."_

"_Each string vibrating at a specific frequency represents something, like a quark, a gluon, etc, each having their own oscillation." The fox cleared his throat, and we were suddenly floating over a large cluster of buildings on a plain. Around the buildings stretched a large ring on the earth, as if some great, circular ruin was buried just beneath the surface. "Our dear friend Mandrake hypothesized that there must be a force acting upon these strings, The Great Force, which he described as a 'tangible ability to change'. Essentially, it was force that was literally, in and of itself, the power of change. Now, at the time, change was considered a transition, not a physical thing, and so humans limited their thinking. But Mandrake nearly killed himself by working on his theory and equations. He soon lost his job, his prestige, and finally, his life by his own hands. A shameful waste." We drifted closer to the buildings. They looked far more advanced than the previous city._

"_Nearly a century later, this facility was built based on advances in Mandrake's theories. Finally accepted, they sought to find further truth in his theory by building an accelerator. Essentially, this machine was built to smash elementary particles together to try and find evidence of this Great Force." The fox yawned. "It was here where the world changed."_

_The ring erupted brilliantly in a flash of glaring blue light, like a welder's torch. When my vision readjusted, I found myself staring not at a crater, but at jagged spikes of crystallized matter contained exactly within the ring. One was the color of iron, another looked like a solid, massive ruby. Here and there, billowing gases flooded back and forth. One or two buildings kept their shape, but it seemed as if the entire structure had turned to ice and was slowly melting. Another building had turned into a tree, twisted and leafy. "The power of Change had been discovered, Hinata." The fox grinned, then laughed. "And it was to be unleashed on this unsuspecting Earth. The wholesale harnessing of instantly plucking those invisible strings and converting it into whatever material one deems necessary."_

_We came out of Earth, and watched it spin slowly, then faster and faster. All over the globe, advances were made, buildings were risen in a flash, land was made from water, and water was made from land. Forests rose, forests fell, iron was grown, rubies were harvested, wind was contained in bottles. Fire was condensed and raised. Soon, the world's geography was entirely different, land masses themselves shifted from their foundations. "Nearly two thousand years passed since Mandrake killed himself in the name of his science, and the world was totally revolutionized. People no longer died so easily, and life was extended from a few decades to a few centuries. There were wars, there was peace, but none of it lived up to just living. The only thing that The Great Force could not do was make life from non-life. Life can only arise from life itself. But there were some who were not content to believe this little bit of truth."_

"_And now begins my story."_

_I awoke in my bed, breathing hard._

--

I warned you. Blatantly Sci-Fi. If anyone is curious, there is such a thing as a string-theory, but it's a whole lot more complex than I give it credit.

Next time, The Kyuubi no Kitsune's history. As well as a few others.

-Raz


	12. Intermission Cubed

--()--

**Intermission**

_--()--_

_20 of the third month_

_My life has become ever more complicated. My mind is burdened. I fear I am losing all my innocence that I once so treasured in my youth. I find myself thinking...thoughts, more and more often. Thoughts of Naruto. Thoughts of the Kitsune inhabiting Naruto's body. And then I see the darkness behind those bright eyes, and I am brought back to reality._

_He began his story again as soon as my head touched my pillow. He appeared again in that glass room, surrounded by a sea of darkness. "There were nine of us, originally." The darkness molded and became space and time, with thousands of stars twinkling far, far away. "In the Alpha Centurion system, quite a few astronomical units away from the cradle of our origins, my own, isolated story begins. Here is my home, my original home. A small planet terraformed to be livable. It was an American colony, and so was named after certain parts of the old world." A planet slowly orbited into view, lush with greens and blues of a healthy world. _

_Again, we dipped into the atmosphere, falling towards a small ridge of land surrounded by ocean. "This is New Cape Cod, named so for its climate and geography that it shares with the original on earth. This colony had been here for near two thousand years, and it was quiet. It was here that I began my life, and, in one way or another, ended it." The fox yawned, sighing as our glass room fell into another laboratory, where everything was backlit with glowing plasma and brilliant, floating numbers and equations. A man, handsome and young, with dark blue eyes and long brown hair strode into the lab, reading reports from a holoscreen on his wrist. "Before my time, man had perfected harnessing the Great Force through machinery. It was my vision, however, to meld humanity with the cosmic force."_

_Time seemed to speed up, the young man walking out and in, back and forth. Eventually, he began to eat and sleep in the lab. "I locked myself in my lab for nearly five years. I saw neither sunlight, nor tasted fresh air. I lost contact with all by my scientific colleagues, and even those conversations were few and far between. I, like Mandrake before me, poured my very soul into my work." The fox snorted. "Can you believe it, Hinata? I do not even remember my own name. It is blotted from my memory by the nature of my being, yet I remember every person I've ever come in contact with." I asked him what he meant. "It is the way of the Bijuu to forget what he is, and so, his dream will come true."_

_Time began to slow for the man in the lab, as he slowly took off his shirt, and stepped up to a massive machine connected to a glass, cylindrical chamber. "Radiation is a tricky mistress. I'd injected myself with thousands of serums in preparation for this moment. I'd reverse-engineered my own DNA and introduced genome altering viruses and proteins. This device would bring all that research together." Stepping into the machine, the man took a long breath. I could hear him muttering something to himself as he stood shaking in a shaft of light. "This machine was designed to destroy my body. After all, once cells are differentiated, they cannot be altered easily. No, I needed a new body. And so, I was scared. Nervous. My mind, my memories, all that was me had long been stored into various, fail-safe devices. Now, it was out with the old, in with the new."_

_Slowly, the man in the cylinder began to twitch, then spasm, as something was pumped into the chamber. He died standing, and his body fell back into...nothingness. "In a sense, I had to destroy this body, and replicate it with the new and improved genome, the artificial harness on this Great Force. My new body would be a battery for this cosmic energy. But for that, I need my old body to fall out of time, and become ensnared in the quantum foam lying just beneath the skin of our universe. There, my essence would draw what it needed."_

_The chamber lay dormant for a few minutes, before filling slowly with liquid. "Proto-fluid is much like an egg white. The embryo is formed from the yolk, and the white is its nourishment." Time sped again, and a human embryo began to grow within the tank. Then, it grew into a newborn, a child, an adolescent, and finally, it was a carbon copy of the man from before. "It took two decades from my brain waves to become functional, and all my memories were forcibly shoved back into my brain. My soul was returned to me."With a gurgle, the man within the tube came awake, gasping in large quantities of the proto-fluid. "My life as a Bijuu began."_

_The chamber erupted into ice shards as the newly formed chakra being stepped from his containment, shuddering and staring at his hands. Then, smiling, he straightened, and the lab was gone in a flurry of red petals and explosions, leaving only the man, unscathed and quite gleeful. He roared his victory to a pinkish sky, laughing and shaking in unparalleled mirth. "Back then, I believed myself good, a force of righteousness and iron-handed power in an unruly universe. And nine others soon followed in my steps."_

_I saw a flurry of faces, men, women, all stepping from some machine or another, in different times and places. "I was the first, and most raw of all, having linked myself to the very limitless Force itself. The others, though vastly powerful, did not do the same, instead imbuing themselves to replenish their own chakra. They were strong, though not as strong as I."_

_We flicked past worlds, where I saw the man throw buildings, tear down mountains, shifts rivers, and change the landscape. "I lasted for millennia, shifting between the roles of Alleviater and Avenger, to the roles of Villain and Tyrant. Neither held my interest for long, as my mind was still human. I drank deep of the pleasures of the worlds, but nothing satisfies for millennia upon millennia. I ushered in ages and epochs, empires and worlds. I destroyed billions of trillions, and crushed planets like grapes."_

_Our glass room shifted about, venturing to one world, then another. Finally, it came to rest on one in particular. "This is your world." It was a brown world, with drab, thick clouds and nothing but sand and rocks rolling on and on. "It is here were we gathered, the Bijuu. We had war, we had peace, and through our combined efforts, shaped this world." Green spread here, water erupted there. The planet indeed changed. "Ours was a tenuous relationship, where Brothers and Sisters fought more like animals." The fox hummed, as if pondering something. "We slowly began to lose our original forms, becoming more and more like animals. We chose to become what beast we were most like, unconsciously, or consciously. And so, we shed our original skin."_

_Dark forms rose and towered against the mountains of the world. A fox, massive and furious, laughed deeply, sonorously, and tore out into the wastelands, breaking no oxygen, seeing no light. This being was of the world, but not completely. "There is, of course, a very basic problem to being immortal, Hinata." The fox shifted in his chair, and the glass room sped after the massive Kitsune's running form. "Beyond all the boredom, beyond the fact that my feelings, emotions, and aspirations bled away as I realized exactly how long my life-span was, there was the simple loneliness." The sun spun around the world, flicking over the horizon and dipping back on the other side with the eternal revolutions of the quiet, desert planet. Greenery sprang up as power bled from the nine Bijuu, oceans sprang to being, and life gradually began. "I long lost the ability to feel anything for creation, for annihilation, for anything. I was a statue with a mobile body. Eternity is ever so much longer than I would have thought."_

_The sun spun faster and faster, blurring and turning the sky into an eternal twilight as time leapt forward for the audience of two. "Then, lo and behold, man himself came to our lonely little world." With a sudden jerk, the sun halted in the sky, and a massive spacecraft plummeted out into the world, casting aside water, wood, and dust. People poured out and a village soon sprang out onto the world's crust. "I had lain in a sort of deadened state for nearly two million years, my attention wandering to the farthest reaches of space, and I saw them coming in their little faster-than-light ships. Finally, me and my Brethren had something to do! We would be like gods unto these little creatures." _

_A startling laugh arose from the fox, disproportionate to his size. "Oh, but we didn't realize that they all ready had themselves a little god. Not that they realized it, but the Mother was among them. These humans were naturally imbued with the Great Force. We, the Bijuu, who had forgone our own humanity to acquire that power, were jealous. The power bled from the Mother herself, and we could do nothing about it. We'd lost before we'd even begun to fight." Time sped again, and multiple wars erupted, blackening the sky. Massive domes were constructed, enclosing humanity from the encroaching darkness. Bijuu, one by one, were imprisoned in these domes, and controlled. "Our biggest mistake was to underestimate how inventive humanity is. We reduced these people to pre-atomic technologies, and still they managed to ensnare us. It is only recently you are recovering from our footsteps." The Kitsune sighed, and a clay pot materialized in the air before me. "This was my prison for nearly one million years, and long did humanity forget that I was there. Luckily, curiosity ensnares your species more than it should."_

_Naruto, I said, and he nodded. "My current cell is not comfortable, nor large, but far more fun than I would have thought. This is simply because now, I can siphon emotion, thought, feeling. It's delicious to feel again, Hinata."_

_I asked why he would show this to me. Why would he enlighten me? "Because, my dear, naïve girl, I can now feel pride. And pride prompts my story to be known. If it is not, then I am not." The wicked smile scribbled itself on his face. "And now, I am."_

_And so his history dreams ended._

_17 of the Twelfth Month_

_Things have escalated. There is prolonged battles our among the downtown areas, the Royal Guard and Akatsuki using bombed out buildings for barracks and sniping at one another across streets come now to be known as 'no-man's land'. My father's car was struck by a high-caliber bullet and killed one of the body guards. We had a fine funeral. Now that this war is starting to affect us, my urgency is increased. The countryside is now riddled with massive holes, charred and smoking. One nearly struck the House._

_Our operations begin in earnest tonight. The Eye has contacted us all. Naruto is supposed to meet us en-route, but we have only a rough approximation as to when. He's been gone for nine months now, and it'll be good to see him again. Perhaps only he has not lost his joviality and love for life in these morose times._

_I go. Perhaps for a long time._

--

Yo. Been a while. This is mainly cause I got discouraged in this story when I had, like, 24 hits and almost no reviews. Just that sick feeling that your story sucks. It took me a bit, and a review, (Haha) to kick myself in the head. I remembered that I don't write for ya'll, but for me. So, without further ado, whether or not anyone reads this, I'll put it out there, because this story is just too much fun. :)

-Raz


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